Scandal-plagued congressman defies nervous Trump political operation and storms into showdown with Jon Ossoff

By JON MICHAEL RAASCH, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT Published: 01:20, 17 June 2026 | Updated: 01:29, 17 June 2026 A Trump-backed Republican Congressman from Georgia who's weathered a series of scandals has won the state's Senate GOP primary runoff and secured a spot to challenge the Democratic Party's rising golden boy.  Congressman Mike Collins bested Republican former football coach Derek Dooley in Tuesday evening's election, NBC News projected. Heading into election day he had a 90 percent chance of winning the race, per prediction market Kalshi. He had an 8-point advantage over Dooley with about half of the vote counted.   Sources familiar with the White House's political operation expressed hesitation about President Trump's support of Collins, who has faced scrutiny over his controversial staffing decisions and suspect social media posts.  Collins' former chief of staff allegedly helped hire his girlfriend, who was paid $10,000 for work staffers could not discern. His current chief of staff was found to be in a group chat with white nationalists and anti-semites and a former Collins intern and campaign staffer self-proclaimed he was a racist.  Collins has also been accused of peddling 'racist' social media posts, specifically after he circulated a video in 2024 of a college student making monkey sounds and gestures at a black female student with the caption, 'taking care of business.' And Republicans are concerned because incumbent Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff, 39, has surged in polls and heralded as a possible 2028 presidential candidate after a series of rousing speeches that have eviscerated Trump and electrified his party base. Your browser does not support iframes. Collins beat former football coach Derek Dooley in a runoff for the Georgia Senate GOP primary on Tuesday Georgia GOP Senate hopeful Congressman Mike Collins (L) with President Donald Trump (C) in the Oval Office with his wife Leigh Ann Collins (R). Trump endorsed Collins on Monday, the day before Tuesday's runoff  Collins will now face incumbent Georgia Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff (shown above) in November's general election  Trump threw his support behind the Congressman in a last-minute endorsement announced on Monday, all but formally cementing Collins as the Republican nominee.  Some in Trump's orbit have raised alarm over Collins' hardline stance on abortion - the Congressman said in 2022 he supported no exceptions, even for rape, incest or when a mother's life is at risk. A major Democratic super PAC dubbed Collins 'an opposition researcher's dream.'  'He treats Congress like a money-making scheme for his family business, an ethics-free zone, and a conspiracy theory clearinghouse - sometimes all in the same week,' said Lauren French, a spokeswoman for Senate Majority PAC after Collins was crowned the nominee. Ossoff, meanwhile, is widely seen as a next-generation leader of the Democratic Party after his surprising 2021 election win over then-incumbent Republican David Perdue. The Senator has also become one of the best fundraisers in the country, entering the general election cycle with over $32 million in his campaign coffers.  Collins, by contrast, has just over $1 million in campaign cash on hand, per his latest federal filings.  Polls heading into the November general election show Ossoff with an edge over Collins.  Polls asking voters on who they prefer in a head-to-head matchup between Ossoff and Collins show that the Democrat has a multi-point edge  Collins had a 98 percent chance of winning the Senate GOP primary runoff on Tuesday afternoon The path to victory for Collins in the general election treads through difficult terrain.  Though Trump won Georgia by two points in 2024, the state is still seen as a battleground that has flipped back and forth between the two parties. Ossoff, meanwhile, is the only Democratic Senator who is up for reelection in a state that Trump won, meaning the GOP has their target set on him to flip the state red.   The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.