On Thursday night after the Democrat National Convention, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp (R-GA) took to the airwaves on Sean Hannity’s prime-time Fox News show, and the conversation made headlines after Kemp issued a surprising statement regarding the election.
In a pivot from his previous public disagreements with former President Donald Trump, the Georgia governor officially endorsed the former president for the 2024 election. This marked a significant turnaround in a relationship that was once fraught with public disputes and disagreements.
“Well, Sean, look, we gotta win. We gotta win from the top of the ticket on down,” Kemp said on Fox News. “I’ve been saying consistently for a long time, we cannot afford another four years of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, and I think Kamala Harris and Tim Walz could be even worse. So we need to send Donald Trump back to the White House.”
“We need to retake the Senate. We need to hold the House. We need to hold our legislative majorities that we have in the great state of Georgia. And it takes hard work, that’s what we’ve been doing. And it takes hard work, that’s what we’ve been doing.”
For Kemp, the endorsement may help mend fences within his party and solidify his position by aligning with Trump’s still-powerful base. For Trump, receiving support from a one-time adversary could enhance his credibility and demonstrate his ability to unify the party’s various factions.
According to a source close to the matter who spoke to Politico, Trump apparently approved of Kemp’s recent appearance on Sean Hannity’s show. This nod of approval from Trump led to a notable shift in their relationship, signaling a newfound camaraderie as they gear up for the upcoming election cycle.
Trump wrote on Truth Social, “Thank you to #BrianKempGA for all of your help and support in Georgia, where a win is so important to the success of our Party and, most importantly, our Country. I look forward to working with you, your team, and all of my friends in Georgia to help MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
Once political foes, Trump and Georgia’s Governor Kemp are burying the hatchet as the 2024 elections loom. The two have had a rocky relationship, largely due to Kemp’s refusal to back Trump’s bid to contest the 2020 election results. This friction even saw Trump backing Kemp’s rival in the 2022 primary, which Kemp won. But with an eye on the next big race, unity seems to be the new game plan.
The battleground of Georgia is once again at the epicenter of presidential politics, with Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris both eyeing the state as crucial to their White House ambitions. With new voting regulations in play, there’s a growing concern that these changes could rekindle the contentious atmosphere of the 2020 elections, casting shadows of doubt and suspicion over the democratic process. Current polling in Georgia shows Trump holding a narrow lead over Harris.
The state, traditionally a Republican stronghold, saw a significant shift as it flipped to support the Democrat candidate, Joe Biden. Biden won Georgia by a narrow margin of just under 12,000 votes, marking the first time a Democrat had won the state in a presidential election since Bill Clinton in 1992. The close results led to a full hand recount, a request from the Trump campaign under state law due to the narrow margin. Georgia’s role in the 2020 election was crucial, not only because of its electoral votes but also due to the subsequent national attention and legal challenges that followed.
