Nearly two dozen candidates have qualified to run in a high-profile Georgia House race, as the competition to succeed former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene swings into high gear.
Seventeen Republicans, three Democrats, a Libertarian, and an independent filed to campaign in Greene’s 14th Congressional District by Wednesday, the last day to qualify for the race.
Greene announced in early January that she would resign from her seat, viewed as the most Republican-leaning district in Georgia. The development occurred following the feisty “America only” lawmaker’s growing disagreements with high-profile party members, including President Donald Trump, over the United States promoting itself abroad or partnering with allies, particularly Israel.
Last week, Gov. Brian Kemp (R-GA) announced March 10 as the special election date to serve out the remainder of Greene’s term. All 22 candidates who have filed to run will be on the same all-party ballot. If no one wins a majority outright in March, the top two finishers will go to a runoff on April 7.
Greene has said she will not endorse a candidate to take her place.
Some of the more high-profile names who have filed to succeed her include Republican state Sen. Colton Moore and District Attorney Clay Fuller. Moore has branded himself as a pro-Trump lawmaker and “100% the most Blue Collar candidate in the race.” Fuller finished fourth in the 2020 Republican primary, which Greene won, before being appointed as district attorney in 2023. In a post announcing his run, he described himself as “a veteran and America First prosecutor.”
Those who lose the election to fill the remainder of Greene’s term could still end up filling the seat later this year. The traditional primary for the next political cycle is in May, and the general election is in November.
Filling Greene’s seat will take some pressure off of House Majority Leader Mike Johnson (R-LA). The speaker is grappling with a razor-thin majority, and his team recently reiterated pleas for members to show up for votes.
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House Majority Whip Tom Emmer’s (R-MN) office is advising members that “outside of life-and-death circumstances, the whip’s office expects members to be here working on behalf of the American people,” according to NBC News.
Their presence in Washington is essential if they are to “pass legislation to lower costs, secure the border, and support the president’s agenda,” Emmer’s office said.