WORTH COUNTY, Ga. (WALB) - Republican U.S. Senate candidate Derek Dooley is on the road across South Georgia with Governor Brian Kemp for a two-day, 13-county tour.

Gov. Kemp, who has endorsed Dooley, said they will show Dooley as the strongest Republican to challenge incumbent Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in the November general election.

At a meet-and-greet event in Worth County on Thursday, April 30, Dooley drew contrasts with the incumbent, pointing to Ossoff’s voting record under the Biden administration.

“A lot of Georgians don’t realize under the last administration he voted 98% for Joe Biden,” Dooley said. “And that includes things and a lot of the issues that we’re still dealing with. This 40-year high inflation he voted three times for. The open borders policy he supported. A lot of the woke stuff on our kids and the men and women’s sports.”

Kemp endorsement

Governor Kemp said his endorsement comes down to winning and representing Georgia values. Kemp, whose term as governor ends this year, said Democrats failed to act on key issues.

“A lot of the things that Senator Ossoff complains about all the time — when Democrats had complete control of everything, the White House, the U.S. Senate and the Congress — my question is why didn’t you fix some of those problems? And now they’re blaming everything on everybody else.”

Dooley’s ‘Georgia First’ contract

Dooley has outlined a set of pledges he’s calling his “Georgia First” Contract — a list of commitments he says will hold him accountable if elected:

• Term Limits: Dooley pledges to serve no more than two terms in the U.S. Senate and says he will fight to force a vote on congressional term limits for all elected officials.
• No Stock or Crypto Trading: He will not trade individual stocks or digital assets while in office and will push to ban those trades for all members of Congress, their spouses, and senior staff.
• No Pay During Shutdowns: Dooley says he will not accept a taxpayer-funded paycheck during a government shutdown and will work to reform the system that allows Congress to get paid even when it fails to pass a budget.
• Accountability to All Georgians: He pledges to hold at least ten town halls across the state during his first term — including with constituents who didn’t vote for him.

Five Republican Primary candidates

Dooley is not the only Republican vying for the seat. He faces four other Republican candidates: U.S. Representatives Buddy Carter and Mike Collins, John Coyne and Jonathan McColumn.

Notably, Dooley has secured Gov. Kemp’s endorsement but has not received President Donald Trump’s endorsement.

Democrats’ response: ‘Failed, fired, losing Tennessee coach’

The Democratic Party of Georgia provided a statement about Dooley and Kemp’s tour. Read it in full below.

“Derek Dooley’s Senate campaign is tanking just as bad as the football programs he coached. Brian Kemp can parade Dooley around the state all he wants, but Georgians deserve better than a failed, fired, losing Tennessee coach as their U.S. Senator.”

The primary election is on May 19. The winner of the Republican primary will face Sen. Jon Ossoff (D), who is seeking re-election in the general election on Nov. 3.

Tour in South Georgia

The two-day tour started on Wednesday, April 29, in Tift County. Dooley and Gov. Kemp will end in Dougherty County at a meet-and-greet reception on Friday, May 1. The events are free to the community by RSVP.

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