2026 Georgia Gubernatorial Race: Polls Show High Uncertainty
As the 2026 Georgia gubernatorial race heats up, several key candidates are emerging from the pack. However, with the primaries still over six months away, many voters remain undecided, according to a new poll.
Leading the Democratic field is former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who has garnered 40 percent support among likely primary voters. This information comes from a survey conducted by the University of Georgia and reported by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Bottoms, who recently served as a senior adviser on the Harris-Waltz campaign, holds a considerable lead over her closest rival, former DeKalb CEO Michael Thurmond, who sits at 11 percent.
The other four Democratic candidates are currently in single digits. With a significant 40% of likely Democratic primary voters still undecided, there’s a lot of potential for changes as Democrats try to reclaim the governorship for the first time in two decades.
On the Republican side, uncertainty also reigns, with 55% of primary voters indicating they are undecided. Nevertheless, Lieutenant Governor Bert Jones, who has the backing of former President Donald Trump, is ahead. He leads his nearest competitor, the Georgia Secretary of State, by 22 percentage points, whereas Michael Thurmond stands at 15 percent, and Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr follows with 7 percent.
Top Republicans are eyeing the chance to unseat Gov. Brian Kemp, who cannot run again after serving two terms.
Georgia’s primary election is set for May 19, 2026. If no candidate secures more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two will enter a runoff, with the winner facing the opposing party’s candidate in the general election scheduled for November 2026.
The recent Democratic primary poll was conducted from October 13 to October 21 among 1,000 likely Democratic primary voters, carrying a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points. Similarly, the Republican primary poll ran from October 15 to October 23 among 1,000 likely Republican primary voters, also with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
