President Donald Trump announced plans for a return to Georgia to campaign for GOP Senate candidates one day before the January 5 runoff election.
“As badly as we were treated in Georgia by the ‘Republican’ Governor and ‘Republican’ Secretary of State, we must have a massive victory for two great people, @KLoeffler & @sendavidperdue, on January 5th,” Trump wrote in a tweet late Saturday night. “I will be having a big Rally for them on Monday night, January 4th. WIN!”
As badly as we were treated in Georgia by the “Republican” Governor and “Republican” Secretary of State, we must have a massive victory for two great people, @KLoeffler & @sendavidperdue, on January 5th. I will be having a big Rally for them on Monday night, January 4th. WIN!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 20, 2020
Despite a series of legal defeats and no significant legal wins in challenges across several swing states, Trump has so far refused to concede the November election to President-elect Joe Biden, instead continuing to insist the election was “rigged” and rife with widespread fraud.
Meanwhile, as Republican Georgia Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue campaign against Democratic challengers Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, respectively, Republicans in Georgia have had to walk a fine line between not wanting to cross Trump publicly and also encouraging Georgia voters that their vote matters.
Trump last campaigned in the state on December 5, and pulled back on tentative plans to campaign this weekend at least in part because of continued anger at Georgia’s Republican governor and secretary of state, the New York Times reported. (RELATED: ‘If You Don’t Vote, They Win’: Mike Pence Addresses Georgians With ‘Doubts About The Last Election’)
With 50 seats to Democrats’ 48, Republicans must win one of two Senate seats in Georgia to maintain their slim majority. Loeffler and Perdue both have slim leads over their Democratic opponents, according to the Real Clear Politics average.