A decade ago, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones became one of the first Georgia politicians to endorse Donald Trump. On Monday, Trump returned the favor and gave Jones’ campaign for governor a major boost.

“Burt Jones for Governor has my Complete and Total Endorsement — HE WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!” Trump posted on social media.

Jones spent years cultivating the president’s support, and the endorsement seemed inevitable after U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, his biggest potential rival for a Trump blessing, opted out of the race.

It’s a setback for Attorney General Chris Carr, the only other prominent Republican in the contest. Carr has made four visits to the White House since Trump’s return, trying to bridge the MAGA and mainstream wings of the GOP.

Jones now wields a prized endorsement ahead of a primary likely dominated by voters aligned with the president’s loyalists and a $14 million war chest fueled by his personal fortune. Jones, whose family runs an oil business and an insurance firm, lent his campaign $10 million.

Trump won more than 80% of the state’s presidential primary vote and topped Kamala Harris by over 110,000 votes in November. A recent Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll showed that most Georgia Republicans support the president and his policies.

Carr, however, knows firsthand that Trump’s rejection doesn’t doom his chances. He handily defeated a Trump-backed challenger in 2022 and later sought to mend his relationship with the president.

But Carr could face added pressure in competing for more mainstream Republicans, especially if Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a favorite of centrist voters, jumps into the race.

Long histories

Jones and Trump have a long relationship. As a state senator in 2015, Jones endorsed Trump when most Georgia Republicans kept their distance. He was a key surrogate for Trump in 2020. His father, Bill Jones, is one of his top Georgia donors.

After Trump’s defeat, Burt Jones pressed for a special legislative session and supported lawsuits aimed at reversing Joe Biden‘s victory.

He also urged then-Vice President Mike Pence to reject the official results in Congress, and served as one of the 16 Republican electors who signed documents falsely stating Trump carried Georgia.

A special grand jury later recommended Jones be indicted as part of the Fulton County election-interference probe, but District Attorney Fani Willis was barred by a judge from charging him, and a special prosecutor declined to pursue the case. Jones has denied wrongdoing, calling the investigation “politically motivated.”

Trump’s backing helped Jones win the open lieutenant governor’s race in 2022, one of the few statewide Republicans to benefit from his endorsement that year. In 2023, Jones was the highest-ranking Republican to attend a state GOP convention headlined by Trump, while Gov. Brian Kemp and other top Republicans skipped it.

In office, Jones has tasked special committees with scrutinizing Willis’ decision to pursue election interference charges against Trump and his allies. He was also a constant on the 2024 campaign trail.

Carr’s own relationship with Trump has been rocky. While he supported Trump in 2016 and 2020, he drew MAGA backlash when he refused to join a failed Texas lawsuit to invalidate Georgia’s results, calling it “constitutionally, legally and factually wrong.”

In his campaign for governor, Carr has worked to reach both hard-line Trump supporters and more moderate Republicans who could give him a boost.

“I know that the Trump administration is going to be far better on the issues that I care about, which are jobs and the economy, safety, and an immigration system that starts with defending the nation,” Carr told the AJC earlier this year.

Jones, meanwhile, savored the endorsement.

“We’re fighting for election integrity, lower taxes, and to secure Georgia values,” he said. “And with Trump’s support, we’re just getting started.”

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