Kemp’s Unexpected Primary Vote Decision: No Support for Trump?

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp gave an unexpected answer on Wednesday when asked by CNN host Kaitlan Collins whether he had voted for former President Donald Trump in the Republican primary. During an interview on CNN’s The Source, Kemp revealed he had abstained from voting for any candidate.

“Speaking of the Georgia primary, who did you vote for?” Collins asked Kemp. “In the Georgia primary? I didn’t vote for anybody. I voted, but I didn’t vote for anybody. I mean, the race was already over when the primary got here,” Kemp responded. Collins pressed further: “But you didn’t vote for Donald Trump?” Kemp reiterated, “I didn’t vote for anybody” as per Mediaite. 

When asked why he chose not to vote for anyone, Kemp explained, “Because the race was over with.” Collins found Kemp’s response intriguing, “Wow, that’s pretty interesting.”

Kemp elaborated on his decision, stating, “I mean, I wanted to go vote. I always try to go vote and, you know, play a part in it, but look, at that point, it didn’t really matter. I’ve said for a long time, as you know, I’ll support the ticket. That’s what I’m doing now, and we have a lot of races on the ballot here in Georgia, not just the presidential race.”

Trump, who once gave Kemp a “full and total endorsement” for governor in 2018, later called him a 'fool' and a 'clown' for not supporting efforts to overturn Georgia’s 2020 election results as per Yahoo News.

Trump then backed Kemp’s 2022 primary challenger, former Sen. David Perdue, who lost to Kemp by over 50 points in May. Despite their contentious history, Kemp assured Collins that he would support the GOP ticket in November. Collins questioned Kemp's previous remarks, noting that many Republicans participated in the primary and voted for Trump.

Kemp responded, “Well, it would be, for me, personally, politically, I mean it would be interesting if I had’ve voted for him, it would be interesting if I didn’t, it would be interesting if I didn’t vote at all.

But the bottom line, it doesn’t really matter. I mean, he was the presumptive nominee before the primary ever got here. I mean, I didn’t support anybody in the race. I mean, I was thinking about it but, just ’cause a lot of circumstances and the way things played out, didn’t end up doing that.”

When asked if he would campaign for Trump, Kemp stated he would “see how the race plays out.” “Regardless of our history together, I have a vested interest in Georgia remaining in Republican hands,” Kemp said, highlighting his victory in the 2022 election and a recent Georgia Supreme Court race where the incumbent won.

Kemp emphasized his commitment to maintaining Republican control in Georgia, despite his rocky history with Trump. “Regardless of our history together, I have a vested interest in Georgia, you know, remaining in Republican hands.”

The relationship between Kemp and Trump has been strained, with Trump supporting Kemp’s primary challenger, David Perdue, in 2022.

This came after Kemp refused to overturn Georgia’s 2020 election results. Despite this, Kemp has consistently pledged to support the Republican ticket.

Last year, when Collins asked Kemp about his decision to back Trump despite their differences, Kemp remarked, “He was mad at me. I was not mad at him. I told him exactly what I could and couldn’t do when it came to the election, and I followed the law and the Constitution. And as I’ve said before, that’s a lot bigger than Trump. It’s a lot bigger than me. It’s a lot bigger than the Republican Party.” Kemp concluded, “But despite all of those things, I believe anybody running for president right now as a Republican, that would be better than what we’re seeing with the Biden-Harris administration.”