Georgia voters on Tuesday cast their ballots to choose their parties’ nominees for U.S. Senate, governor and lieutenant governor. Aside from incumbent Democrat Sen. Jon Ossoff, the Peach State has new nominees to represent voters in the November general election. Governor’s Race Georgia’s top two candidates for both parties will head to their state’s runoff elections on June 16 after failing to clinch at least 50% of the vote. On the Republican side, the contested primary came down to a narrow margin between billionaire philanthropist Rick Jackson and President Donald Trump-endorsed Lt. Gov. Burt Jones. Jackson received 33% of the vote, while Jones came in at 39%. Their primary runoff election is scheduled for June 16. After polling even in April, the race reached a decision point after Jones pressed Jackson over his history on illegal immigration, including illegal workers allegedly employed by Jackson’s landscaping companies. “You claim to be tough on deportation, but you’ve got illegals working in your backyard as we speak,” Jones said. “Who’s the real Rick Jackson?” Jackson denied the allegation, saying he is not aware of his employees’ immigration status. The third candidate in the race, Brad Raffensperger, came in at 14%. Raffensperger campaigned on having been the first secretary of state to require photo ID for all forms of voting and to expand polling locations while holding counties accountable. He has highlighted his record of “modernizing” the state’s election system, including implementing an auditable paper ballot system and expanding voter control over election security, according to his official website. On the Democrat side, former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who has the endorsement of former President Joe Biden, won over 56% of the vote, making her the Democrat nominee. Republican Senate Candidate In the race for Republicans to unseat Ossoff in November, Rep. Mike Collins and former college football coach Derek Dooley will head to the June runoff election. Collins, who received the endorsement of Trump-endorsed candidates, such as Rep. Eli Crane, R-Ariz, ran on a strict border enforcement campaign. Collins, who gained 41% of the vote, gained popularity among House Republicans in 2024 after he introduced and passed the Laken Riley Act, which enhanced border enforcement operations throughout the country. “I have proven that I can deliver for the state of Georgia,” Collins said. “I can even do it with bipartisan legislation. And I never compromise my conservative values.” Named after the Georgia nursing student killed during a morning jog by an illegal immigrant previously released by the Biden administration, the Laken Riley Act mandated the federal detention of non-U.S. nationals who are arrested, charged, or convicted of specific offenses, including theft, burglary, larceny, shoplifting, or assault of a law enforcement officer. Dooley, who claimed 30% of the vote, ran on being loyal to Trump and being a Washington outsider. “I want to win our Senate seat back,” Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who endorsed Dooley, told voters at a local bike and coffee shop just days ahead of Tuesday’s primary. “We haven’t done so well in U.S. Senate races here in the state of Georgia in the last several cycles, and we have one more opportunity to try to get one of our Senate seats back. And we’ve got to have the right person to do that.” At a recent campaign event, Kemp argued that Dooley’s status as a political outsider could give Republicans their best chance at reclaiming the seat. “My goal here is to win our Senate seat back,” Kemp said. “We need a political outsider to do that.” Rep. Earl “Buddy” Carter, the third candidate in the race, came in at 25%.