Recent polls indicate that Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.) is ahead in Georgia’s Republican Senate primary.
Collins, who serves Georgia’s 10th Congressional District and has his own trucking business, is competing against newcomer Derek Dooley, who has received an endorsement from Gov. Brian Kemp (R-Ga.), and Rep. Buddy Carter (R-Ga.), a long-time Republican representative and former University of Tennessee football coach. The Republican Party began winning elections in the state in 2021, as the Democrats are now aiming for re-election.
A poll by Rasmussen Reports and Public Voices shows Collins at the forefront with 34% support from Georgia’s Republican primary voters. Carter trails with 19%, and Dooley stands at 11%. Additionally, 36% of respondents back other candidates or remain undecided.
After the results were published, Collins’ campaign manager, Josh Siegel, remarked, “Groundhog Day has come and gone, but it’s here to stay again. Derek Dooley has spent 25 years searching for what seems like his 11th job. Meanwhile, Mike Collins has built a thriving trucking company for 30 years, providing hundreds of jobs in Georgia, all while serving in Congress and delivering on promises to get good policies enacted with two different presidents.”
Siegel continued, “No other candidate can match the firepower, manpower, and enthusiasm of Team Collins. The Georgia Republican Party wants Mike Collins to win. Delaying focus on the main election only works in favor of liberal Democrat Jon Ossoff.”
As per the survey, 39% of Georgia Republican primary voters prefer a Trump-aligned candidate for the Senate, while 32% lean towards a traditional Republican, and 22% favor a moderate Republican.
The polling data notes that “40% of those wanting a Trump-aligned Republican plan to vote for Collins.”
Georgia’s Republican Senate primary is scheduled for May 19th. If no candidate secures over 50% of the vote, a runoff will occur between the top two candidates, with the victor set to challenge Ossoff in November.
Polls indicate that either Collins or Carter would likely surpass Dooley in a runoff, but Collins is expected to have a more substantial lead. If the runoff features Collins against Carter, Collins may be ahead by 13 points, yet roughly one-third of Republican voters claim they are undecided in that scenario.
The Rasmussen poll was conducted from February 11-12, 2026, with 1,022 Georgia Republican primary voters surveyed. The sampling error is ±3 percentage points, and the confidence level stands at 95 percent.
RealClear polling averages for the 2026 Georgia Senate race suggest that Collins poses the most considerable challenge to Ossoff, who is predicted to have a slight 2.3-point advantage over him. In comparison, Ossoff appears to lead Carter by 3.6 points and Dooley by 6 points. According to the Cook Political Report, the race is currently deemed a “toss-up.”
