Georgia primary could be the starting gun for Democratic and Republican runoffs

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia is preparing for a blockbuster primary on Tuesday as Republicans look for a challenger to Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff and choose between several candidates in a high-spending slugfest for the party's nomination for governor.

In the Senate race, Reps. Mike Collins and Buddy Carter are playing up their conservative records on Capitol Hill, while former college football coach Derek Dooley pitches himself as a political outsider.

The governor's race has been transformed by healthcare billionaire Rick Jackson, who has spent more than twice as much as any other primary candidate in Georgia history. He's facing off against fellow Republicans Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, who was endorsed by President Donald Trump; Brad Raffensperger, the secretary of state; and Chris Carr, the state attorney general.

Democratic voters are also considering who should lead the party's effort to win the governor's office for the first time since 1998. The candidates include Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former Atlanta mayor; Geoff Duncan, a Republican-turned-Democrat who served as lieutenant governor; Jason Esteves, a former state senator; and Mike Thurmond, a former state labor commissioner.

It's possible that none of these races could be settled on Tuesday if no candidates win a majority of the vote. Top two finishers would advance to a June 16 runoff.

Ossoff faces no opposition among Democrats as he seeks reelection by positioning himself as a staunch critic of Trump. He's the only senator from his party running for reelection in a state that Trump won in 2024, making his campaign among the most closely watched in the country as Democrats try to retake control of the chamber.

The senator has raised almost $60 million this cycle, dwarfing potential Republican rivals. He’s taken aim at the president and his sons for personal business dealings. Ossoff calls political corruption a bipartisan problem and has pushed legislation to ban members of Congress from making individual stock trades.

Meanwhile, the Republican primary has been a test of fealty to the president. Collins, who represents a district east of Atlanta, and Carter, who represents a district anchored by Savannah, are playing up their conservative records on Capitol Hill. Dooley, the son of the late University of Georgia coach Vince Dooley, says he would back Trump’s agenda without being steeped in Washington politics.

Carter has attacked Collins over a House ethics complaint accusing him of abusing taxpayer funds by paying the girlfriend of a top aide for work she allegedly didn't perform. The Office of Congressional Conduct, after an initial inquiry, has referred the matter to the House Ethics Committee.

Collins denies wrongdoing.

“If taxpayers can’t trust you to properly steward their money, how can they trust you to be a U.S. senator?” Carter asked Collins in a primary debate.

“Buddy,” Collins shot back, “I can tell through your voice that you know how the polling is going out there.”

Collins, who has deep ties with grassroots conservatives who propelled Trump, also emphasizes his work on immigration. He sponsored a 2025 law that requires immigrants be detained when charged with certain crimes. Republicans believe the issue damages Ossoff because he initially voted against the measure before supporting it after Trump’s 2024 victory.

More than $113 million has been spent on advertising in the Republican primary for governor, with more than $61 million of that spend on Jackson’s campaign. By contrast, Democrats running for governor have only spent about $3 million.

Jones argues that his conservative record as a state senator and lieutenant governor, combined with Trump's support, should make him the clear choice for Republican voters. Jackson is betting that his outside pitch will win over antiestablishment conservatives.

Jackson and Jones are opposed by other Republicans including Raffensperger and Carr, who are hoping that voters disgusted by the attacks between Jackson and Jones will be looking for other options.

On the Democratic side, Bottoms is hoping to win her party's nomination and avoid a runoff. She's been endorsed by former President Joe Biden after serving in his administration and is downplaying attacks on her one-term record as mayor of Atlanta. She's the only Black woman in the Democratic field, which can be a powerful advantage in a state where Black women are the bedrock of the party.

Three other top Democrats have hopes of reaching a runoff. As a former Republican, Duncan argues that he can best attract swing voters to help Democrats win. Thurmond is campaigning on his deep experience in state government and Esteves argues he can build the “multiracial, multigenerational coalition” to win Georgia's young and diverse electorate.

Four of Georgia's 14 U.S. House districts are open, with Carter and Collins running for Senate, Republican U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk stepping down and Democrat David Scott's seat opening following his death in April.

Scott's death scrambled the race in the majority-Black 13th District in Atlanta's southern and eastern suburbs that had mainly been about attacking him as too old and too absent. The Democratic field includes state Rep. Jasmine Clark, who has raised the most money, and Gwinnett County school board Chair Everton Blair.

In the 11th District northwest of Atlanta, Loudermilk announced his retirement and endorsed staffer Rob Adkerson, who's challenged by neurologist John Cowan and Public Service Commissioner Tricia Pridemore.

In the 10th District east of Atlanta, state Rep. Houston Gaines is the top Republican seeking to succeed Collins. Jim Kingston, the son of longtime U.S. Rep. Jack Kingston, is the top Republican to take Carter's seat in coastal Georgia's 1st District.

In northeast Georgia's 9th District, three-term Republican incumbent Andrew Clyde is trying to fend off primary challenges from former Gainesville Mayor Sam Couvillon and Hall County Commissioner Gregg Poole.

Tuesday is the general election for Georgia's judgeships. The posts are technically nonpartisan, but eight of the nine justices on the state Supreme Court were appointed by Republicans governors. Democrats are supporting former state Sen. Jen Jordan in her challenge to Justice Sarah Hawkins Warren and Miracle Rankin in her challenge to Justice Charlie Bethel.

They hope a strong Democratic turnout could produce the first defeat of an incumbent justice since 1922. A third justice, Ben Land, is unopposed for a six-year term.

The state Judicial Qualifications Commission, which investigates allegations of wrongdoing by judges, said in statements dated Sunday that Jordan and Rankin violated rules of judicial conduct by publicly endorsing each other and making statements supporting the restoration of abortion rights.

The commission said it reached its conclusions, which are not a final determination, after receiving and reviewing a complaint about each candidate.

State Democratic Party Chair Charlie Bailey called the commission's statements “a cynical attempt by a mere bureaucratic arm of the Georgia Republican establishment to hide the truth about this race from Georgia voters.”

Amy is a former Associated Press reporter.

U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., speaks to supporters in Acworth, Ga., on Monday, May 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy)

Georgia Republican candidate for governor Burt Jones speaks to supporters Tuesday, May 12, 2026, in Smyrna, Ga. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Jackson speaks to voters during a campaign stop, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Hiram, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms, arrives to vote early in the Georgia Primary Election, Thursday, May 7, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

BUNIA, Congo (AP) — The World Health Organization director-general openly worried Tuesday over the “scale and speed” of an outbreak of a rare type of Ebola in eastern Congo, where authorities reported a sharp increase in suspected deaths — to at least 131 — and more than 500 suspected cases.

The virus spread undetected for weeks after the first known death as authorities tested for a more common type of Ebola and came up negative, health experts and aid workers said. The Bundibugyo virus has no approved medicines or vaccines.

Congo’s health minister, Samuel Roger Kamba, said that investigations were underway to determine whether the deaths and 513 suspected cases were “actually linked to the disease.”

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said he is “deeply concerned about the scale and speed of the epidemic,” adding that the U.N. health agency will convene its emergency committee later Tuesday. He pointed to the emergence of cases in urban areas, the deaths of healthcare workers and significant population movement.

WHO has declared the Ebola outbreak a public health emergency of international concern, requiring a coordinated response. Resources were being rushed to the two affected provinces near the border with Uganda, which has reported one death in a person who traveled from Congo.

The head of the WHO team in Congo said that authorities haven’t identified “patient zero” in the outbreak.

Dr. Anne Ancia also said the Erbevo vaccine, used against a different type of Ebola, was among those being considered for possible use. But even if that or another is approved, it would take two months to become available.

For now, Ancia said, neither the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention nor the Africa Centers for Disease Control were on the ground, but others were, including Doctors Without Borders and the Red Cross.

She said that she expected a long road ahead: “I don’t see that in two months we will be done with this outbreak.”

Inside Congo, cases have been confirmed in the capital of Ituri province, Bunia; North Kivu’s rebel-held capital, Goma; and the localities of Mongbwalu, Nyakunde and Butembo — home to well over a million people in all.

Dr. Peter Stafford, an American doctor, is among the Bunia cases, said Serge, the Christian organization that he works for. He had been treating patients at a hospital. Three other Serge employees were working there, including Stafford’s wife, but weren't showing symptoms.

Congo has said the first person died from the virus on April 24 in Bunia, and the body was repatriated to the Mongbwalu health zone, a mining area with a large population.

“That caused the Ebola outbreak to escalate,” said Kamba, the health minister.

When another person fell ill on April 26, samples were sent to Congo's capital, Kinshasa, for testing, according to the Africa CDC. Bunia is more than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) away in a country with some of the world's worst infrastructure.

Samples from Bunia were initially tested for the more common type of Ebola, Zaire, Congolese officials said. They came back negative, said Dr. Richard Kitenge, the health ministry incident manager for Ebola, and local authorities assumed that it wasn't the virus.

Only laboratories in Kinshasa and Goma, which is now controlled by the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group, have the capacity to test for the Bundibugyo virus.

Benjamin Mbonimpa, M23's permanent secretary, told reporters on Sunday that the rebel government had established entry and exit points in the city and would take responsibility for funeral services in the event of continued spread.

“Our priority is to protect the population within our jurisdiction, and we urge people to resume their daily activities,” he said.

On May 5, WHO was alerted of about 50 deaths in Mongbwalu, including four health workers. The first confirmation of Ebola came on May 14.

“Our surveillance system didn't work,” said Jean-Jaques Muyembe, a virologist at the National Institute of Bio-Medical Research.

“The Bunia laboratory ... should have continued searching and sent the samples to the national laboratory. Something went wrong there. That’s why we ended up in this catastrophic situation,” he said, adding that members of parliament and senators were aware “there were deaths and nothing was being said.”

Matthew M. Kavanagh, director of the Georgetown University Center for Global Health Policy and Politics, criticized the Trump administration’s earlier decision to withdraw from WHO and make deep cuts in foreign aid — “the exact surveillance system meant to catch these viruses early,” he said.

The U.S. State Department pushed aside criticism on Monday, saying it sprang into action immediately and has provided $13 million in assistance for the response.

Ebola is highly contagious and can be contracted via bodily fluids such as vomit, blood or semen. The disease it causes is rare but severe and often fatal. During an outbreak more than a decade ago that killed more than 11,000 people, many were infected while washing bodies during community funerals.

“Ebola is very much a disease of compassion in that it impacts the people who are more likely to be taking care of sick folks,” said Dr. Craig Spencer, an associate professor at the Brown University School of Public Health who survived Ebola more than a decade ago after contracting it in Guinea.

Ebola causes fever, headache, muscle pain, weakness, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach pain and unexplained bleeding or bruising.

The severity of the symptoms and the rising caseload were fueling growing panic in Bunia neighborhoods.

“I know the consequences of Ebola, I know what it’s like,” resident Noëla Lumo said. She previously lived in Beni, a region hit by former outbreaks. When she heard about the latest one, she began making protective masks by hand.

Eastern Congo long has grappled with a humanitarian crisis and the threat of armed groups that have killed dozens and displaced thousands in Ituri in the past year. Ituri already had more than 273,000 displaced people out of a population of 1.9 million, according to the U.N.

U.N. staff have been asked to work from home and avoid physical contact and crowded areas, said a Bunia-based U.N. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly on the subject.

The most important challenge is breaking the virus transmission chain, Muyembe said.

“Of the 17 epidemics we have experienced in (Congo), 15 were brought under control simply by applying public health measures,” he said. “The disease is transmitted through contact with bodily fluids. If you avoid this contact, you break the chain of transmission and the epidemic stops.”

Monika Pronczuk reported from Dakar, Senegal. AP writers Jamey Keaten in Geneva, Constant Same Bagalwa in Bunia, Congo and Wilson McMakin in Dakar contributed.

For more on Africa and development: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-pulse

The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

A woman wearing a protective mask stands in the corridor of a hospital in Bunia, Congo, Sunday, May 17, 2026. (AP Photo/ Dirole Lotsima Dieudonne)