Derek Dooley didn't vote for years. Now he wants Georgia voters to send him to Washington

ATLANTA (AP) — Lots of candidates pitch themselves as political outsiders. Derek Dooley goes a step further. Not only is the former football coach running for the first time, he says he did not vote for nearly two decades.

He did not vote when Republican Donald Trump was first elected president in 2016. Nor did he vote in 2020, when Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden.

But Dooley does not worry about that as he seeks the Republican nomination to face Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in Georgia. He insists Washington needs someone with a fresh outlook, someone who is not focused on “their own political career or their political ambitions.”

Besides, lots of people do not vote, and Dooley told The Associated Press that he wants to inspire more people to do so.

“If you’re not vigilant in exercising that right, things can go pretty sideways in our country,” he said.

Dooley’s opponents in the May 19 primary include two congressmen, Mike Collins and Buddy Carter. Although Dooley supports Trump, Collins and Carter are more closely identified with Trump’s “Make America Great Again” brand. With support from the more establishment Gov. Brian Kemp, Dooley will test whether his outsider narrative is compelling at a time when Trump’s antiestablishment movement already dominates the nation's capital.

The primary winner will be among the most important Republican candidates in this year’s midterm elections, with a chance to help the party preserve its thin Senate majority by ousting Ossoff.

Dooley is the son of legendary University of Georgia football coach Vince Dooley. Derek Dooley worked as a lawyer before he started coaching. He led the University of Tennessee but was fired after a losing record. He then worked as an assistant coach for other colleges as well as professional teams.

He stepped away from the sidelines after the 2023 season, and Dooley said coaching people from a range of backgrounds will help him connect with Georgia’s diverse voting population.

“In my 30-plus years professional career, it’s never been about me in anything I was doing,” he said. “It’s about people.”

Dooley said he got interested in politics during Biden’s presidency, when he was upset about lax border enforcement, economic policies and support for transgender athletes. He has criticized Ossoff over the same issues. Dooley said he resumed voting in 2022, when he backed Kemp for governor, and he voted for Trump in 2024.

Republican strategist Brian Robinson said “you can tell this wasn’t a guy who spent his life in politics or around politics or consumed by politics.”

Kemp was close with Dooley’s family growing up, and he endorsed Dooley for Senate, putting establishment heft behind the political novice.

“I was looking for a political outsider, and it just happened to be a guy that I’ve known for, you know, 50-plus years,” Kemp said on stage with Dooley during an event with the Atlanta Young Republicans on Thursday.

Kemp and Dooley drew cheers from many in the crowd. Several people at the event said they had not decided on their primary choice but appreciated Dooley’s outsider perspective.

The relationship between Dooley and Kemp does not impress others.

“Completely siloing yourself with the old, establishment governor is not a way to say you’re an outsider,” said Courtlyn Cook, chair of the Glynn County Republicans in southeast Georgia. She said voters will remember that Kemp and Trump have not always gotten along, a key issue when the president enjoys deep support from the party's base.

Dooley’s ties with Kemp are a target for political opponents.

Devon Cruz, senior communications adviser for the Democratic Party of Georgia, described Dooley as someone with “access to the Governor’s political machine.” Harley Adsit, a spokesperson for Carter’s campaign, called Dooley the “ultimate insider.”

Canton voter Vanessa Artigas, 53, likes Kemp and understands why some of her friends used to not vote, so she will likely support Dooley.

“I think we need to get career politicians out and get the voice of the people in,” said Artigas, who attended a local event for the conservative organization Turning Point Action.

University of West Georgia student Timothy Jackson, 19, is planning to vote for Collins because of his close ties to Trump, but is open to Carter.

“Both of them have been in Congress and so they know what it takes,” Jackson said. “Dooley is going to be hard because he’s never been in that position before.”

A Kemp-linked group funded an advertisement for Dooley last fall blaming Collins and Carter for the government shutdown, lumping them in with Ossoff.

Carter, a pharmacist, has been a political fixture along Georgia’s coast for nearly three decades. Collins is a trucking company co-owner and the son of a former congressman.

“Republicans are going to face an uphill battle, but Dooley doesn’t bring the baggage that other candidates could possibly bring and can speak not only to voters on the right and Republicans, but the voters in the center who will make the decision,” said longtime Republican consultant Jason Shepherd. “Jon Ossoff has a voting record that Dooley can run on and pick apart. Dooley does not.”

Dooley said he wants to boost workforce training and reduce home prices by cutting back government regulation. He also praised the Trump administration’s capture of Nicolás Maduro, who was ousted as Venezuela's president by the U.S. military in January, and blamed immigrants for reducing the number of available homes for U.S. citizens. Dooley promised to introduce legislation to prevent lawmakers from using taxpayer money to send campaign-related materials, which he accused Collins of doing improperly.

A spokesperson for Collins said his actions were approved by the House Communications Standards Commission, and he criticized Dooley as “a washed-up lawyer and failed coach.”

Robinson, the GOP strategist, said Dooley will need to explain to Georgians why being an outsider matters enough to earn their votes.

“It’s a well-worn path. The saliency of that message probably depends on the mood of the country and the cycle that we’re in,” Robinson said. “I don’t think we know just yet if that outsider message is what people are looking for.”

This version has been updated to correct the spelling Vanessa Artigas' first name.

FILE - Tennessee head coach Derek Dooley, right, congratulates Tauren Poole (28) after he scored in the first quarter of an NCAA college football game against Middle Tennessee, Nov. 5, 2011, in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne, File)

Derek Dooley, left, a Republican candidate for Senate in Georgia, listens as Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp speaks during an Atlanta Young Republicans campaign event Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Alyssa Pointer)

A political campaign sign for Derek Dooley, a Republican candidate for Senate in Georgia, is displayed during an Atlanta Young Republicans campaign event Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Alyssa Pointer)

Derek Dooley, a Republican candidate for Senate in Georgia, listens to questions during an Atlanta Young Republicans campaign event Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Alyssa Pointer)

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, right, listens as Derek Dooley, left, a Republican candidate for Senate in Georgia, speaks during an Atlanta Young Republicans campaign event Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Alyssa Pointer)

Derek Dooley, a Republican candidate for Senate in Georgia, listens to Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, not pictured, speak during an Atlanta Young Republicans campaign event Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Alyssa Pointer)

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Another three members of the Iran's women’s soccer team who accepted refugee visas to stay in Australia have decided to return to their homeland, an Australian government minister said on Sunday.

The departure leaves three of an initial seven squad members in Australia.

“Overnight, three members of the Iranian Women’s Football Team made the decision to join the rest of the team on their journey back to Iran,” Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said in a statement.

“After telling Australian officials they had made this decision, the players were given repeated chances to talk about their options,” Burke added.

Iran's team arrived in Australia for the Women’s Asian Cup last month, before the war in the Middle East began on Feb. 28.

Initially, six players and a support staff member from a squad list of 26 players accepted humanitarian visas to stay in Australia before the rest of the Iranian contingent flew from Sydney to Malaysia on March 9.

Another later changed her mind and left Australia. Three left Sydney for Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Saturday night, a government official said. The rest of the team has remained in Kuala Lumpur since they left Australia.

Iran's Tasnim News Agency said the latest three to leave Australia were two players and the support staff member. The three were “returning to the warm embrace of their family and homeland,” the news outlet said in a statement.

Concerns about the team's safety in Iran heightened when the players didn't sing the Iranian national anthem before their first match.

The Australian government was urged to help the women by Iranian groups in Australia and by U.S. President Donald Trump.

The Iranian news agency described the women's return to the team as the “disgraceful failure of the American-Australian project and another failure for Trump.”

Treasurer Jim Chalmers, one of the most senior members of the Australian government, said he was pleased that three of the Iranian women would remain in Australia.

“I am worried about them,” Chalmers told Seven Network television, referring to the women who had changed their minds about staying in Australia.

“I can only image the pressure that they feel and how difficult these sorts of decisions would be for them,” Chalmers added.

Burke said Australians should be proud that their country presented the Iranian team with choices and sought to help them.

“While the Australian government can ensure that opportunities are provided and communicated, we cannot remove the context in which the players are making these incredibly difficult decisions,” Burke said.

“The Australian government has done everything we could to make sure these women were provided with the chance for a safe future in Australia,” he added.

Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke speaks to the media during a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (Lukas Coch/AAPImage via AP)/AAP Image via AP)