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ROME, Ga. — In the special election for Georgia’s 14th Congressional District, Democrat Shawn Harris and Republican Clay Fuller are headed to a runoff. Neither candidate managed to secure a majority of votes on Tuesday, leaving Marjorie Taylor Greene’s former U.S. House seat still up for grabs.
Earlier in February, President Donald Trump threw his support behind Fuller, a district attorney responsible for prosecuting crimes across four counties. This endorsement aimed to fill the vacancy left by Greene, who had previously been a staunch Trump ally but resigned in January following disagreements with the former president.
Despite Trump’s backing, Fuller did not achieve a majority in a crowded race that featured 14 candidates, including nine Republicans, three Democrats, a Libertarian, and an independent. Still, Fuller remains optimistic about rallying Republican support to secure a victory over Harris in the upcoming April 7 runoff.
“I’m confident that the Republican Party will rally around us because they recognize the risks of a Democratic victory,” Fuller stated on Tuesday night. “Allowing a Democrat to represent Georgia 14 would be disastrous for our community, the state, and the MAGA movement.”
Trump commended Fuller for securing “such a high percentage of the vote” amidst the extensive field of Republican contenders.
“Clay will be a GREAT Congressman — HE WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!” the president wrote on social media.
Harris, a cattle farmer and retired brigadier general, will face an uphill battle to win a majority in the heavily Republican district. Nevertheless, he was leading in the hours after the polls closed and Democrats are likely to boast of his success as they have focused on strong performances in special elections.
Harris has contrasted himself with Greene’s bomb-throwing style, saying practical-minded Republicans should vote for him because he will work for constituents “not for somebody else who’s already in D.C.”
“The way I’m going to go to Congress is that it’s going to be a coalition of Democrats, independents and Republicans,” Harris said Tuesday night.
The winner will serve out the remaining months of Greene’s term. A Republican win in the northwest Georgia district would bolster the party’s slim majority in the House, where Republicans currently control 218 seats to Democrats’ 214.
Fuller was a White House fellow in the first Trump administration and is a lieutenant colonel in the Georgia Air National Guard. He finished fourth in the 2020 Republican primary that Greene won. He credited Trump’s nod for propelling him to the runoff.
“They want to know who President Trump was endorsing in this race,” Fuller said. “And that’s why they came out in droves to support him, because they want an America First fighter on Capitol Hill fighting for his policies that are going to make a difference for our community.”
Harris said he’s not worried about further Trump intervention.
“If Donald Trump wants to come and do what he wants to do, that’s his business,” he said.
This round of voting is only the first step in an elections marathon in the Georgia district. Republicans and Democrats seeking a full two-year term are set for a May 19 party primary, and possibly a June 16 party runoff, before advancing to the general election in November.
Last week, 10 Republicans and Harris qualified to run in November for a full two-year term. That includes Fuller, as well as Colton Moore, a former state senator and favorite of far-right activists who was poised to finish third on Tuesday, short of the runoff.
Those who backed Democrats said they were repelled by Trump and eager to reduce his power.
“There just needs to be checks and balances and I don’t think we have many of those right now,” said Matthew Wisniewski, a Dallas resident who voted for Harris.
Greene was one of the most well-known members of Congress until she left in January. She remained loyal to Trump after he lost to Democrat Joe Biden, promoting Trump’s falsehoods about a stolen election. When Trump ran again in 2024, she toured the country with him and spoke at his rallies while wearing a red “Make America Great Again” hat.
But Greene began clashing with Trump last year after he and other Republicans pushed back against her running for U.S. Senate or governor. Greene criticized Trump’s foreign policy and his reluctance to release documents involving the Jeffrey Epstein case. The president eventually had enough, saying he would support a primary challenge against her. Greene announced a week later that she would resign.
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This story has been updated to remove quotes from Presley Stover. An earlier version of this story stated that Presley Stover voted for Clay Fuller. She voted for Brian Stover, according to Stover’s campaign.
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Associated Press journalist Emilie Megnien contributed to this report.