ATLANTA (AP) — As former President Donald Trump sought to lay blame for his 2020 election loss, Georgia’s secretary of state emerged as one of his main targets. Now, with a Trump-endorsed challenger in the Republican primary, Brad Raffensperger is fighting to keep his job.
The secretary of state emerged from relative obscurity into the national spotlight when he insisted that Georgia’s election had been accurate and secure, and refused to bend to pressure from Trump to overturn Joe Biden’s victory in the state. Raffensperger says he’s running for reelection based on his record of integrity as a principled conservative.
“I’ve shown that I’ll stand and make the hard decisions and I’ll do what is right, and that’s what I’m called to do,” he said in a recent interview with The Associated Press.
Months after Raffensperger certified Biden’s victory, Georgia U.S. Rep. Jody Hice, a conservative Trump loyalist and former pastor, announced he would run against Raffensperger in the May 24 Republican primary and quickly secured the former president’s endorsement. Two others — former Alpharetta Mayor David Belle Isle and former county Probate and Magistrate Judge T.J. Hudson — are also challenging Raffensperger from the right.
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