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Ossoff Leads in Georgia Senate Race, Rejects 2028 Presidential Bid

10:18 PM ETConfirmed

Politics Desk

In Short: Sen. Jon Ossoff leads in Georgia's Senate race, with 94% of his supporters certain of their vote, and he says he won't run for president in 2028.

Sen. Jon Ossoff is leading in Georgia's Senate race, according to a new YouGov poll conducted from September 15 to 18, which shows Ossoff ahead of Republican Rep. Mike Collins by 51% to 41%, with 6% undecided. The poll surveyed 3,447 registered Georgia voters, indicating high certainty among supporters, with 94% of Ossoff supporters and 96% of Collins supporters stating their minds are made up.

Ossoff's lead is bolstered by RealClearPolitics' average, which showed Ossoff up nearly eight points in late September, 51.1% to 43.3%. Independents favored the Democrat 42% to 29%, and Ossoff led by 17 points in the Atlanta media market while Collins carried rural Georgia by 28%. The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter rates the race as a Likely D.

During a heated debate, Ossoff called for Collins to release internal communications following reports involving former Collins staffer Kip Talley and known white nationalists. In his opening statement, Ossoff said, 'Voters would hear the trial of Mike Collins.' Collins, however, dismissed a House Ethics Committee investigation into his office as a 'nothing burger,' suggesting it was politically motivated.

Ossoff criticized the administration's enforcement tactics on border security, stating, 'It’s that you’re robbing your constituents to subsidize your donors.' He also addressed Israel's conduct in the Gaza war, saying, 'Antisemitism, hate of any kind. It’s abhorrent.' Ossoff has long supported Israel’s security but has criticized its conduct in the Gaza war and voted to block some U.S. arms sales to the country.

Ossoff was asked whether Israel had committed genocide in Gaza, whether he was concerned about growing anti-Israel sentiment within the Democratic Party, and whether he would support a proposed $2.8 billion U.S. aid package. He responded, 'It’s that you’re robbing your constituents to subsidize your donors.'

In a separate debate, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms challenged Republican candidate Brian Kemp to six statewide debates, but Kemp declined five of the proposed matchups, agreeing to participate in only one October broadcast. Bottoms set to answer questions solo in the debate.

Ossoff has been running a 'flawless campaign,' according to Democratic strategist Mike Nellis, who told the Daily Mail that Collins is a disaster for the Republicans. Ossoff's campaign has held several fundraisers over the last two years, with this month’s event geared toward raising money for the Democratic Party of Georgia and its coordinated campaign.

Ossoff, in a report to constituents, boasted that he 'fought the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’s’ (OBBB’s) trillion-dollar cut to Medicaid' because '70% of Georgia seniors in nursing homes are on Medicaid, half of all births in Georgia are covered by Medicaid, and 40% of all children in Georgia are covered by Medicaid.'

What this adds

Background

What's confirmed

• According to a new YouGov poll conducted Sept. 15–18 among 3,447 registered Georgia voters, Ossoff leads Republican Rep. Mike Collins 51% to 41% in the 2026 Senate race, with 6% undecided.

What's still developing

• If Democrats win big in November, Ossoff will have cemented a leading role in a key swing state.
• One Nation is a 501(c)(4) “ dark money ” nonprofit – so named because it doesn’t have to publicly disclose its funding sources.
• Lawyers for a group of Democratic candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate, including Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia and former Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, urged the Supreme Court on Saturday afternoon to leave in place a ruling by a federal appeals court that had directed the Federal Communications Commission to rule quickly on a challenge to its “public notice” that would extend favorable advertising rates to political parties and joint fundraising committees in the run-up to federal elections.
• On April 29, Ossoff, Brown, former Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina, who is running for Senate there, and Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet, who is running for reelection in Michigan, asked the full FCC to review the public notice.

Sources

• FOX 5 Atlantalink
• Georgia Asian Timeslink
• Jewish Telegraphic Agencylink
• NBC Newslink
• Newsweeklink
• PBSlink
• Kmphlink
• Politicolink
• Factchecklink
• Scotusbloglink
• WarpBeat — background on Michigan Senate Debate Turns Rancorous as Rogers, El-Sayed Trade Barbs link
• WarpBeat — background on 5 Key Moments From Hostile Michigan Senate Debate Between El-Sayed and Rogers link
• Wikipedia — background on Georgia State Senate link
• C-SPAN — video link