Georgia midterm elections: Why this is a key US battleground

Key points

• Georgia is a key battleground state in next week's US midterm elections, with both parties spending heavily there.
• Democrat Jon Ossoff leads Republican Mike Collins 52.6 percent to 42.4 percent in Senate polling averages.
• The governor's race between Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms and Republican Rick Jackson is polling tightly.

Georgia is one of the key battleground states in next week's US midterm elections, with both major parties devoting significant time and resources to the southern state. President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama both held rallies in Georgia this week as the parties made their closing pitches.

Georgia's three most recent Senate contests have gone to runoffs, and Trump has campaigned twice in Dalton in the past two weeks. In 2024, Georgia voted for Trump by a 2.2 percentage point margin, which observers say leaves it open to either party this time.

Senate and governor races

Incumbent Democrat Jon Ossoff leads Republican Mike Collins 52.6 percent to 42.4 percent in MS NOW polling averages for the Senate seat. Ossoff, elected in a 2021 runoff, is campaigning on affordability, healthcare and government accountability, while Collins is running on Trump's agenda, immigration enforcement and smaller government.

The governor's race is tight, with Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms facing Republican Rick Jackson to succeed Republican Brian Kemp, who cannot seek a third term. Bottoms is campaigning on affordability, healthcare access, education funding and environmental regulation; a win would make her the first black woman elected governor in the US.

I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have

— Donald Trump

Trump's Georgia history

Georgia is a focus for Trump, who disputed his 2020 loss there and in January urged a state official to recalculate the results, saying "I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have". In 2023 he and others were charged over attempts to overturn the loss; the case was dismissed after he returned to office.

At his rallies, Trump has said he will reward states that vote for him and warned Georgia could face consequences if it reelects Ossoff. Obama, at his Wednesday rally, said Trump was "very much focused on enriching himself and his family and his cronies".

Early voting under way

Voters are also choosing representatives for Georgia's 14 congressional districts, where nine seats are currently Republican and five Democratic, as well as the Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General and Secretary of State. About 40 million ballots have already been cast nationwide, according to the University of Florida's election lab, compared with 45.9 million early votes in 2022.