Six more years.
Browse 2026 Elections: Candidate lists, news
Stories on projects, policy, legislation
That’s what Georgia voters gave Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff on Tuesday, handing him a win over Republican Congressman Mike Collins and sending him back to Washington for a second term.
The race was called by the Associated Press less than an hour after polls closed Tuesday.
Ossoff was the only Democratic senator up for reelection in a state won by President Donald Trump in 2024, and heading into 2026, his Georgia seat was seen as a top target for Republicans.
But Ossoff maintained a lead in the polls and a fundraising advantage over the Trump-endorsed Collins throughout the race, boosted by his strengths and by Collins’ weaknesses.
Ossoff’s prospects seemed to improve early on when outgoing Gov. Brian Kemp announced last summer that he would not run for the Senate seat, leaving the GOP with no clear contender. Kemp then backed former football coach Derek Dooley in the race, but Dooley emerged from a three-way contest for the nomination only to fall to Collins in a runoff.
Collins was peppered by a series of scandals throughout his campaign. He is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee over allegations that he used government funds to pay an intern who was dating his chief of staff but who was not performing any duties. His son-in-law is a far-right social media influencer who promotes antisemitic content, and another former staffer has posted Nazi and Ku Klux Klan imagery on social media.
Collins was also likely dragged down by his close association with President Donald Trump, whose approval rating is at a low point in Georgia as voters struggle with high gas prices and inflation.
Ossoff’s campaign touted support from several high-profile Republicans, including former U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona and Republican mayors from cities including Valdosta and Tifton. GOP supporters largely touted Ossoff’s constituent services and particularly his efforts to advocate for Georgia farmers in the wake of Hurricane Helene in 2024.
Ossoff, 39, won his seat after defeating Republican Sen. David Perdue in a tight 2021 runoff in which he and fellow Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock flipped both of Georgia’s Senate seats and helped their party win the majority in that chamber.
Previously, Ossoff worked as an intern for the late civil rights leader and Congressman John Lewis and was the CEO of a company making investigative documentaries. In 2017, he ran unsuccessfully for a U.S. House seat in what became a nationally watched election.
He is seen as a rising star in the Democratic Party, thanks in part to viral clips of him aggressively questioning federal nominees in confirmation hearings and sharply critiquing Trump and Republicans on the campaign trail.
Ossoff’s name often appears on lists of potential Democratic presidential candidates, but he has consistently claimed that he intends to serve his six-year term and will not run for president in 2028.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Georgia Recorder is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.
