Georgia GOP: Will the lesson never be learned?

Published 1:00 am Thursday, July 31, 2025

As Georgia’s political landscape braces for the 2026 U.S. Senate race, the looming showdown between current Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff and the eventual GOP nominee risks repeating past missteps: prioritizing celebrity and name recognition over conservative substance.

While a notable name like former football coach Derek Dooley, progeny of legendary UGA football coach Vince Dooley fame, has surfaced, complete with media swooning, the Georgia GOP has been down that road before with former UGA Bulldog star Herschel Walker.

And that didn’t turn out so well. Walker was defeated by Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock. While star and name power can be alluring, they don’t necessarily attract victory. What Georgia GOP voters should ask themselves is this: Will it ever be learned that headline attraction doesn’t necessarily translate into election day success?

Dooley exemplifies this concern.

A Washington Examiner analysis highlights his sparse voting history. Dooley skipped multiple presidential elections, never registered as a Republican in Texas or New York, and has no record of supporting Trump financially. Perhaps in an effort to minimize these deficiencies, he recently hired two of Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp’s long-time advisors, Cody Hall and Chelsey Ruppersburg. Moreover, it is rumored that Kemp recently revealed that he will be endorsing Dooley, his personal friend, for the Senate seat.

These are troubling signals for a candidate who now seeks to represent Georgia in the U.S. Senate, the world’s greatest deliberative body. Dooley’s apparent indecisiveness and lack of a concrete ideological foundation may well hinder his ability to unite conservative voters and withstand Democratic attacks.

But, hey, GOP voters have demonstrated before their proclivity for the “bright shiny object.”

And that’s the risk when charisma outweighs convictions. Meanwhile, the Republican field has already begun to shape up with two declared candidates.

One is U. S. Rep. Buddy Carter, a loyal backer of Trump who has branded himself a “MAGA warrior” and filed his Senate candidacy back in May. Georgia Insurance Commissioner John King, a former candidate, also aligned himself with President Trump’s agenda in his campaign launch but dropped out, apparently after learning of Kemp’s pending Dooley endorsement.

U.S. Rep. Mike Collins also recently declared his candidacy boldly as a “MAGA” candidate.

Collins brings real legislative accomplishments. In January, he reintroduced the Laken Riley Act, which mandates detention of undocumented immigrants charged with theft or burglary, a bill that became the first legislation signed into law under the second Trump administration.

Aside from the Laken Riley Act, Collins has introduced and passed the TRANQ Act (drug monitoring), the Hypersonic Aviation Amendment (aviation regulation in the 2024 FAA bill) and the Aviation Workforce Development Act. He currently has pending the SAFE for America Act (immigration reform), Safe Passage on Interstates Act (to reign in highway protests) and the Staged Accident Fraud Act (to fight insurance fraud).

These initiatives present tangible policy positions, not mere rhetoric.

Collins embodies Trump’s ideals through consistent advocacy and grassroots

engagement. He’s not just showing up at rallies: he’s business-owner-turned-lawmaker who built a trucking company, led a major credit union, chaired his local chamber of commerce and has demonstrated an authentic blue-collar conservatism. Moreover, that authentic credibility, coupled with his solid voting record and issue familiarity, from immigration to fiscal conservatism, serves him well. Collins appears poised to unify the party. With Kemp and Trump having failed in an effort to rally behind a single GOP contender, Collins fits the mold of someone who can unite the GOP, win a primary, and ultimately defeat Ossoff in November in 2026.

This isn’t to discount Carter, also a self-made successful businessman, as he brings genuine conservative credentials, credibility, and likeability. Perhaps the same could be said for Dooley, but his slate is blank.

The question now is whether Georgia Republicans will finally learn the lesson that all that sparkles is not gold.

Gary Wisenbaker is a Realtor with Century 21 Realty Advisors and can be reached at gary50155@gmail.com and 912-713-2553