Jon Ossoff wins re-election to US Senate in Georgia, defeating Republican Mike Collins
Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff has won re-election in Georgia, beating Republican challenger Mike Collins. His campaign targeted the Trump administration, while Collins' bid was overshadowed by staff ties to far-right extremists.
Democrat Jon Ossoff has been re-elected to the US Senate from Georgia, defeating Republican challenger Mike Collins. The result means Ossoff keeps his seat in the Senate, the upper chamber of Congress.
Ossoff framed his campaign as a referendum on the misdeeds of the Trump administration. He pointed to self-serving stock trades and business deals involving the president and people close to him, and to how the war in Iran and Trump's trade policies have affected the finances of Georgia voters.
Funding and polls
Ossoff raised at least $115.9m during this election cycle, outraising Collins by many multiples. He was never behind Collins in the polls.
The Collins campaign
Collins focused his campaign on immigration enforcement and anti-transgender policies. It was badly damaged by links between campaign staff and white nationalists, neo-Nazis and far-right extremists.
CNN reporters revealed that Collins' son-in-law, David Alan Scheer II, who had worked with Collins' trucking business, advocated white supremacist and Nazi views online. Collins' former chief of staff, Kip Talley, and other aides had met white nationalists Nick Fuentes and Richard Spencer, who had been asking Collins' office to intervene on behalf of Charles C Johnson, a Holocaust denier and rightwing activist jailed on contempt of court charges.
Ossoff repeatedly attacked Collins over these connections in debates and campaign advertising.
