Georgia's 2026 candidates still can't escape fallout from Trump's false 2020 election claims

ATLANTA (AP) — Fallout from the 2020 presidential election feels like it may never end in Georgia.

Maybe more any other state, the decisions made after Democrat Joe Biden's narrow win — and Donald Trump's false claims of victory — still define politics in the Peach State.

In Georgia, 2020 may guide the Republican choice for governor in 2026, influence the Democratic primary for governor, and resonate in the U.S. Senate race.

Brad Raffensperger, the Republican secretary of state who rebuffed Trump's efforts to overturn Biden's Georgia victory is running for governor in 2026. Former Republican Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, who also opposed Trump's push, is seeking the governorship as a “proud Democrat.” The current lieutenant governor, Republican Burt Jones, wears his support of Trump's 2020 cause as a badge of honor.

And Georgia's incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, who is seeking reelection, might not have won in January 2021 but for 2020's chaotic fallout.

“It’s all tied up in the staying power of one Donald Trump,” said Jay Morgan, former executive director of the Georgia Republican Party, explaining why ripples from 2020 still matter.

Some Republicans fear showcasing those differences could repulse some voters. Buzz Brockaway, a former Republican state legislator, said there's a chance “relitigating the 2020 election" will dominate some Georgia races. “If you’re a Republican, that’s bad news, because no one cares beyond a few activists," he said.

In a September Gallup poll, about one-quarter of U.S. adults named economic issues as the most important problem facing the country, while about 4% pointed to issues related to elections and democracy.

Disputes over 2020 animate politics far beyond Georgia. In Michigan, state House Republicans in June proposed impeaching Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a 2026 candidate for governor, in part over claims she improperly backed Biden’s 2020 victory. In Arizona, a Republican legislator who questioned election administration in the state’s most populous county was elected in 2024 to oversee voting there. In Pennsylvania, lawsuits continue over a voting-by-mail law that took effect in 2020, and it could become a 2026 campaign theme because the GOP-endorsed challenger to Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro — state Treasurer Stacy Garrity — supports Trump’s call to eliminate mail voting.

Supporting Trump's false claim of a 2020 victory remains a Republican purity test. GOP primary foes are attacking both Louisiana U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy's reelection bid and Tennessee U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn's run for governor, arguing they didn't back Trump to the hilt after the president's supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

But in Georgia, 2020 is a factor in every marquee race.

Jones was already endorsed for governor by Trump before an August kickoff rally. There, allies proclaimed Jones the true GOP choice because Jones aided Trump's efforts to overturn Biden's win in Georgia. Jones was one of 16 Republicans who declared themselves as electors even though Biden had won, and Jones backed a call for a special session to declare Trump the winner. Raffensperger and Attorney General Chris Carr, Jones' top rivals for the Republican nomination, spurned Trump's efforts.

“In reality, these politicians are MAGA today because it benefits them, but they weren't willing to be MAGA when it might cost them,” state Sen. Greg Dolezal told the pro-Jones crowd. ”In 2020, when President Trump needed allies, these politicians were silent.

Last week, Jones' campaign released an ad calling Carr and Raffensperger “Georgia’s team Never Trump," saying only Jones “always supported” Trump.

Other Republicans are finessing the divide, siding with Trump on current issues while sidestepping past differences. Raffensperger didn't mention Trump once in his 2-minute announcement video for governor, instead focusing on his defense of Georgia's voting system against Biden and two-time Georgia Democratic governor nominee Stacey Abrams. Raffensperger only indirectly alluded to the 2020 firestorm, saying “I'm prepared to make the tough decisions; I follow the law and the Constitution, and I'll always do the right thing for Georgia, no matter what.”

Like Raffensperger, Carr is voicing agreement with Trump's policies, while emphasizing his own record fighting crime and recruiting jobs.

Meanwhile, Duncan quit the Republican Party after years of criticizing Trump and is trying to forge a new identity as a Democrat. At a Black-owned Atlanta coffee shop this month, he campaigned under a mural of prominent Democrats, including Ossoff and one of Duncan's Democratic opponents for governor, former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms. Duncan sought to retool some of his old themes for his new party, including the importance of small businesses and technology, while trumpeting his record as a proven Trump opponent.

“With regards to Donald Trump, whoever wins that Republican primary is going to have to take the keys out of their pocket for the state and hand them over to Donald Trump,” Duncan told The Associated Press.

Republican Gov. Brian Kemp came under Trump's fire after refusing his election-related demands in 2020 although he now maintains a a public peace with the president. But Kemp is trying to make former football coach Derek Dooley the Republican Senate nominee to challenge Ossoff with a variation of a strategy that Raffensperger and Carr are using. Dooley is asserting agreement with Trump, but promising to “put hardworking Georgians first.” His top opponents for the Republican nomination, U.S. Reps. Mike Collins and Buddy Carter, leave not an inch of daylight between them and Trump.

Democrats hope GOP divisions will drive independents to them in 2026. Democratic Party of Georgia Chair Charlie Bailey said swing voters are turned off by kowtowing to Trump.

“There is a toeing of the line, bending of the knee." Bailey said. "Whether something is true or right depends on who said it, namely whether Trump said it.”

But Morgan said there's still a fervor for Trump propelling conservative voters.

“2020 galvanized the base that allowed Donald Trump to be the nominee of the Republican Party once again," Morgan said. "And that base is absolutely essential for anybody seeking a Republican nomination. And then beyond that, that base has to turn out for that candidate to win.”

FILE - U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., speaks during a Rally for our Republic gathering, March 22, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)

FILE - Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger participates during an election forum, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024, in Ann Arbor, Mich. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)

Former Republican lieutenant governor Geoff Duncan, right, speaks about his Democratic campaign for governor Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025, at Black Coffee Co., in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy)

Georgia Republican Lt. Gov. Burt Jones speaks at a rally kicking off his 2026 campaign for governor on Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2025, in Flovilla, Ga. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A state appeals court will decide whether to dismiss felony voter misconduct charges against an Alaska resident born in American Samoa, one of numerous cases that has put a spotlight on the complex citizenship status of people born in the U.S. territory.

The Alaska Court of Appeals heard arguments Thursday in the case against Tupe Smith, who was arrested after winning election to a regional school board in 2023. Smith has said she relied on erroneous information from local election officials in the community of Whittier when she identified herself as a U.S. citizen on voter registration forms.

American Samoa is the only U.S. territory where residents are not automatically granted citizenship by being born on American soil and instead are considered U.S. nationals. Paths to citizenship exist, such as naturalization, though that process can be expensive and cumbersome.

American Samoans can serve in the military, obtain U.S. passports and vote in elections in American Samoa, but they cannot hold public office in the U.S. or participate in most U.S. elections.

Smith's attorneys have asked the appeals court to reverse a lower court's decision that let stand the indictment brought against her. Smith's supporters say she made an innocent mistake that does not merit charges, but the state has argued that Smith falsely and deliberately claimed citizenship.

State prosecutors separately have brought charges against 10 other people from American Samoa in Whittier, including Smith’s husband, Michael Pese.

Thursday's arguments centered on the meaning of the word intentionally.

Smith “and others like her who get caught up in Alaska’s confusing election administration system and do not have any intent to mislead or deceive should not face felony voter misconduct charges,” one of her attorneys, Whitney Brown, told the court.

But Kayla Doyle, an assistant attorney general, said that as part of ensuring election integrity, it's important that oaths being relied upon are accurate.

About 25 people gathered on a snowy street outside the Anchorage courthouse before Thursday’s hearing to support Smith. Some carried signs that read, ”We support Samoans.”

State Sen. Forrest Dunbar, a Democrat who attended the rally, said the Alaska Department of Law has limited resources.

“We should be going after people who are genuine criminals, who are violent criminals, or at least have the intent to deceive,” he said.

In a court filing in 2024, one of Smith's previous attorneys said that when Smith answered questions from the Alaska state trooper who arrested her, she said she was aware that she could not vote in presidential elections but was “unaware of any other restrictions on her ability to vote."

Smith said she marks herself as a U.S. national on paperwork. But when there was no such option on voter registration forms, she was told by city representatives that it was appropriate to mark U.S. citizen, according to the filing.

Smith “exercised what she believed was her right to vote in a local election. She did so without any intent to mislead or deceive anyone,” her current attorneys said in a filing in September. “Her belief that U.S. nationals may vote in local elections, which was supported by advice from City of Whittier election officials, was simply mistaken.”

The state has said Smith falsely and deliberately claimed citizenship. Prosecutors pointed to the language on the voter application forms she filled out in 2020 and 2022, which explicitly said that if the applicant was not at least 18 years old and a U.S. citizen, “do not complete this form, as you are not eligible to vote.”

The counts Smith was indicted on “did not have anything to do with her belief in her ability to vote in certain elections; rather they concerned the straightforward question of whether or not Smith intentionally and falsely swore she was a United States citizen,” Doyle said in a court filing last year.

One of Smith's attorneys, Neil Weare, co-founder of the Washington-based Right to Democracy Project, has said the appeals court could dismiss the case or send it back to the lower court “to consider whether the state can meet the standard it has set forth for voter misconduct.” The state also could decide to file other charges if the case is dismissed, he said.

The court did not give a timeline for when it would issue a ruling.

Bohrer reported from Juneau, Alaska.

State Sen. Forrest Dunbar, left, stands with supporters of Tupe Smith gathered Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, outside the Boney Courthouse in Anchorage, Alaska, ahead of the Alaska Court of Appeals hearing a challenge to the voter misconduct case brought against American Samoa native Tupe Smith by the state. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

Supporters of Tupe Smith gather outside the Boney Courthouse in Anchorage, Alaska, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, ahead of the Alaska Court of Appeals hearing a challenge to the voter misconduct case brought against American Samoa native Tupe Smith by the state. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

Michael Pese and his wife, Tupe Smith, stand outside the Boney Courthouse in Anchorage, Alaska, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, ahead of the Alaska Court of Appeals hearing a challenge to the voter fraud case brought against her by the state. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

Michael Pese, left, his wife, Tupe Smith, and their son Maximus pose for a photo outside the Boney Courthouse in Anchorage, Alaska, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, ahead of the Alaska Court of Appeals hearing a challenge to the voter fraud case brought against her by the state. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen)

FILE - Tupe Smith poses for a photo outside the school in Whittier, Alaska, May 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen, File)