ATLANTA — Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones and businessman Rick Jackson will advance to a runoff for the Republican nomination for governor, the Associated Press projects.
The runoff is scheduled for June 16. The winner will advance to the general election in November against Democratic nominee and former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.
[LIVE ELECTION RESULTS: Georgia primary election 2026]
Who are the candidates?
Burt Jones
Jones was elected Lt. Governor in 2022, serving as President of the State Senate. Prior to that, he represented Georgia’s 25th District in the State Senate.
“In office, Burt has prioritized putting more money back in the pockets of working families through tax reform, improving our K-12 and higher education system by empowering parents with school choice legislation that allows them to choose what is right for their children, and supporting law enforcement with the tools and legislation needed to combat the fentanyl crisis and keep Georgia communities safe,” he wrote on his campaign website.
Jones was a student-athlete and a four-year letterman for the University of Georgia football team. As a former walk-on, Burt Jones was elected permanent team captain for the 2002 season, helping to steer the team to its first SEC Championship in 20 years. In 2014, UGA named Burt a Distinguished Alumnus and named him to its “40 Under 40” list.
Burt and his wife, Jan, live in Butts County with their two children, Stella and Banks.
[LIVE UPDATES: Results for Georgia’s primary elections rolling in]
Rick Jackson
Businessman running as an outsider, not a career politician. His surprise entrance and pledge to spend at least $50 million of his own money has jolted the Republican primary.
Since jumping into the race, polls have shows Jackson leading or within striking distance of Lt. Gov. Burt Jones.
In 2000, he founded Jackson Healthcare, which provides healthcare staffing and workforce services.
Jackson Healthcare earned nearly $1 billion from 2020 through 2026 — most during the COVID-19 pandemic — from various Georgia agencies through state contracts.
Jackson Healthcare is privately-held and reports more than $3 billion in annual revenue.
He founded his first medical recruitment business in 1978.
Jackson said he grew up in midtown Atlanta in the foster care system. Jackson said he “moved through five foster homes and thirteen schools and spent time living in the Techwood Homes projects in Atlanta.”
In the 2010s, Jackson paid to promote an unsuccessful overhaul of Georgia medical malpractice claims and wanted to privatize the state’s foster care system.
Jackson lives in Cumming in a 47,000-square-foot mansion. He and his wife Melody have three children. Shane Jackson is president of Jackson Healthcare, and Chad Jackson runs the Jackson Family Foundation.
In 2015, Jackson co-produced the film 90 Minutes in Heaven.
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