Businessman Rick Jackson has won the Republican nomination for governor of Georgia, defeating Trump-endorsed Lt. Gov. Burt Jones in one of the most expensive and closely watched primary battles of the 2026 cycle. Decision Desk HQ projected Jackson as the winner Tuesday night, capping a campaign in which the healthcare executive spent more than $100 million of his own fortune to overcome endorsements from both President Donald Trump and outgoing Republican Gov. Brian Kemp. Jackson will now face former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who secured the Democratic nomination in May, in what is expected to be one of the most competitive governor’s races in the country. The result represents a rare setback for Trump’s endorsement operation. The president backed Jones nearly a year ago and repeatedly reaffirmed his support throughout the campaign. Kemp, despite his often-complicated relationship with Trump, joined the President and also endorsed Jones on Sunday. Yet Jackson’s massive personal spending transformed the race. A relative political outsider, Jackson built statewide name recognition through an unprecedented advertising blitz centered on immigration enforcement, tax cuts, healthcare manufacturing, and his personal story of growing up in Georgia’s foster care system before becoming a billionaire entrepreneur. The contest also revealed an unusual split within the Trump political orbit. While President Trump stood firmly behind Jones, Donald Trump Jr. publicly praised Jackson on the eve of the election, highlighting his investments in domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing and energy infrastructure. Trump Jr. stopped short of issuing a formal endorsement but described Jackson as a “good man” who had helped advance America First economic priorities. “Regardless of what happens in the Georgia Governor’s race tomorrow, we should celebrate the patriots building up MAGA and an America First economy like Rick Jackson has,” Trump Jr. wrote Monday. Jackson’s victory suggests that enormous personal wealth and outsider appeal can still overcome even the combined political weight of political kingpins like Trump and Kemp in a Republican primary. The race was widely viewed as a test of influence for both men. Trump remains the dominant figure in Republican politics nationally, while Kemp leaves office as one of the most popular governors in the country and a potential 2028 presidential contender. Attention now shifts to the general election, where Jackson will face Bottoms, the former Atlanta mayor and Biden administration official who has long been considered one of Georgia Democrats’ strongest statewide candidates. With Georgia continuing to occupy the center of the nation’s political battleground map — perhaps only behind Pennsylvania in swing-state importance — the Jackson-Bottoms contest is expected to become one of the most closely watched governor’s races in America this November.

Georgia Republicans on Tuesday chose Rep. Mike Collins as their Senate nominee to face Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in a race that could help determine control of the upper chamber. With half of the results reported, Collins leads former Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley with 53.3% of the vote. Decision Desk HQ called the race at 8:05p.m. local time. Collins and Dooley advanced to a runoff on May 22 after no candidate passed the 50% threshold, earning 40.5% and 30.2% of the vote, respectively.  The contest presented another test between the power of the MAGA movement and the Republican establishment, with President Donald Trump and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp once again at odds. Over the weekend, Trump weighed into the race for the first time, throwing his political clout behind Collins.  “It is my Great Honor to endorse ‘MAGA’ Mike Collins, a Highly Respected Congressman who has been with me from the very beginning, and is running for the United States Senate in Georgia, a very special place to me, and where we just had a BIG Presidential Election Win with the Most Votes Received by any single Candidate in Georgia’s History, for any Election,” Trump wrote on Monday morning. “Mike is strongly supported by the most Highly Respected MAGA Patriots in Georgia and beyond, and many Republicans in the U.S. House and Senate — He is a WARRIOR and WINNER!”  Trump first endorsed Collins on Saturday.  “Mike has to beat a Republican Opponent before he gets to Ossoff,” Trump said on Saturday in his first post endorsing Collins. “I don’t know Derek Dooley, and neither does anyone else, but he seems like a nice person. Unfortunately, he has lived outside of Georgia for most of his life, didn’t vote in 2020 or 2016, and said that I lost Georgia in 2020 when, in actuality, the facts have now proven that I won by a lot!” Governor Kemp backed Dooley, who said the former football coach was “our one and only opportunity to knock Jon Ossoff off.” Marty and I are proud to support @DerekDooleyGA. Hardworking Georgians are ready to fire Jon Ossoff and send a conservative fighter who will put Georgians first and bring a new kind of leadership to Washington, D.C. Let’s get out the vote for Derek tomorrow! pic.twitter.com/B8v3QA8ubP — Brian Kemp (@BrianKempGA) June 15, 2026 Kemp, a popular two-term governor, did not get his way. Trump, widely seen as the kingmaker of Republican politics, has consistently prevailed in Republican primaries, with few exceptions. Last month, Trump made another last-minute intervention in a GOP Senate runoff, endorsing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who defeated Senator John Cornyn in a landslide margin. The president also knocked off longtime Republican Congressman Thomas Massie in Kentucky and a handful of Indiana state lawmakers who bucked his redistricting push.  Whether his hand-picked candidate will prevail in November presents a different question. Ossoff, the only incumbent Democratic senator in a state that voted for Trump, holds an early advantage going into November, according to most polls. Holding Ossoff’s seat would go a long way in Democratic efforts to flip the 53-47 Republican-controlled Senate.  “After nearly a year-long, brutally messy audition to win over the White House, Trump puppets Mike Collins and Derek Dooley have made themselves both unelectable and terminally inseparable from the toxic president,” the Ossoff campaign posted on X.

Two people were shot Tuesday afternoon inside a Delaware hospital, prompting a massive police response, a campus lockdown, and an active search for the suspected gunman.  The shooting occurred around 3:30 p.m. at Wilmington Hospital, a ChristianaCare facility in Wilmington, Delaware, per Fox News,. According to the Wilmington Police Department, officers responding to the scene located two victims suffering from gunshot wounds inside the hospital. Authorities have not released the identities of the victims or provided an update on their conditions. BREAKING: Heavy police presence at a hospital in Wilmington, Delaware following reports of a shooting. pic.twitter.com/e90rdP8vGi — Breaking911 (@Breaking911) June 16, 2026 Law enforcement sources told local media that preliminary information suggests the shooting involved hospital employees, with one employee allegedly opening fire on two coworkers. Police said a suspect has been identified, though officials have not publicly released the individual’s name. Authorities are actively searching for the suspect and investigating a possible vehicle connected to the shooting. Following the incident, Wilmington Hospital was placed on lockdown and the emergency department was diverted as officers secured the campus. Video from the scene showed hospital employees being escorted from the building with their hands raised while heavily armed law enforcement officers established a perimeter around the facility. “At this time, police have located two gunshot victims,” the Wilmington Police Department said in a statement. “The hospital remains locked down and police continue to ask the public to avoid the area.” ChristianaCare confirmed the shooting and said it is working closely with law enforcement. “This is an active police investigation,” the hospital said in a statement. “We are taking all appropriate steps to ensure the safety of our patients, caregivers and visitors.” The motive remains unclear, and the investigation is ongoing.

A federal magistrate rescinded an order on Monday, June 15, which had allowed the 16-year-old charged with the death and sexual assault of his stepsister, to remain in the custody of family members while awaiting trial. U.S. Magistrate Judge Edwin Torres issued a 14-page order in response to the prosecutor’s request to detain Timothy Hudson, who is charged with the rape and murder of his stepsister, Anna Kepner. Torres agreed that detention was the correct call — not based on Hudson being a flight risk, but rather his “dangerousness.” “The strength of the evidence here points strongly in favor of detention,” Torres said in the court documents from June 10. “Focusing just on the sexual assault charge, the Government’s case for a forcible rape is beyond clear and convincing.”  “Indeed it suggests a level of psychopathy and lack of remorse that by itself raises a serious concern that Defendant can snap at any time, despite the well-meaning and serious efforts of his caretakers to make sure that does not happen,” Torres said.  Hudson was reportedly  “obsessed” with Kepner despite the two being part of the same blended family. “She was scared of him because he always carried around a big knife,” Kepner’s ex-boyfriend’s father, Steven Westin, said. His son, Joshua, dated Kepner for about two years.  “He’s like infatuated, attracted to her like crazy. He always wanted to date her,” Westin said. On November 7, 2025 Kepner’s body was found wrapped in a blanket and stuffed under the bed when a cleaning attendant entered a Carnival cruise ship room that she shared with Hudson and her half-brother. Her stepmother and biological father were staying in the room across the hall.  Torres obtained a transcript from a February hearing, which revealed the medical examiner discovered bleeding under Kepner’s skin around the side and back of her neck. This is evidence of strangulation, and her cause of death was ruled as mechanical asphyxiation. The transcript also said DNA was found inside her body which was a match to Hudson. The deadline for entering any plea agreement is August 28, according to the court records. If found guilty, Hudson could be sentenced to life in prison. “The situation is deeply painful and complex for the entire family,” Christopher Kepner, the victim’s father, said in a previous statement. He said the family has “trust in the justice system to pursue the truth with care and integrity.” Kepner was a Titusville high school senior who had aspirations to join the U.S. Navy and to eventually become a K-9 police officer, according to her online obituary. Her family described her as joyful and compassionate with a “radiant smile and endless energy.”

After months of global attention focused on the conflict with Iran and instability in the Middle East, President Donald Trump signaled Tuesday that the United States is preparing to turn its attention back toward Russia’s war in Ukraine, including the possible return of sanctions on Russian oil exports. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, Trump suggested the temporary easing of some sanctions on Russian oil could soon come to an end now that energy markets have stabilized following and an agreement with Iran has been reached. “Soon we’ll be able to do that because the oil is now flowing,” Trump said. “We’re in a position to do that soon.” The comments mark one of the clearest indications yet that the administration is preparing to resume economic pressure on Moscow after spending much of the spring focused on preventing a broader regional war in the Middle East. During the height of the Iran conflict, Washington eased certain restrictions on Russian oil shipments in an effort to keep global energy prices from spiraling upward. Oil markets have since calmed following the Gulf ceasefire and the reopening of shipping lanes through the Strait of Hormuz. Trump told reporters that Iran would soon be “back in the rearview mirror,” allowing the administration to return its focus to ending the war in Ukraine. The shift comes as European allies are dramatically increasing pressure on the Kremlin. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced a fresh round of sanctions targeting Russia’s energy sector, financial networks, and the so-called “shadow fleet” of vessels used to circumvent Western restrictions on oil and liquefied natural gas exports. The new British measures expand sanctions to more than 600 vessels connected to Russia’s energy trade and target networks accused of helping Moscow acquire Western technology and move money around the globe despite existing restrictions. “Putin should roll back his tanks, end his barbaric strikes and come to the negotiating table,” Starmer said while announcing additional support for Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Canada unveiled its own sanctions package Tuesday, targeting 162 individuals, entities, and vessels linked to Russia’s war effort. Meanwhile, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is pushing a new sanctions package aimed at Russia’s banking, energy, and trade sectors. The coordinated pressure campaign comes after another major Russian attack on Ukraine. Hours before the G7 summit opened, Russia launched hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles against Ukrainian cities, killing at least 11 people and damaging civilian infrastructure. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky joined G7 leaders Tuesday for discussions centered on increasing military aid and tightening economic pressure on Moscow. “The entire Seven supports Ukraine unanimously today,” Zelensky said following the meeting. According to several European officials, leaders at the summit broadly agreed that additional economic pressure will be necessary to force Russian President Vladimir Putin back to the negotiating table. Some European officials entered the summit uncertain whether the Trump administration would support tougher measures after months of focusing primarily on the Middle East. Those concerns appear to have eased following Trump’s remarks and the administration’s willingness to revisit sanctions now that energy markets have stabilized. While Trump campaigned on ending the Russia-Ukraine war quickly, negotiations have proven far more difficult than anticipated. The president acknowledged Tuesday that resolving the conflict remains challenging but insisted he would continue pushing for an end to the fighting. “The whole thing is ridiculous,” Trump said. “So, yeah, I’m going to do whatever I can.” With the Iran crisis cooling and Western leaders increasingly aligned on raising the cost of Russia’s war effort, sanctions appear poised to become a central tool once again in the international campaign against Moscow.