The bickering and mud-slinging between Republican gubernatorial candidates Casey Cagle and Brian Kemp is a well documented phenomenon. Over the last nine weeks, the runoff foes have attacked one another with the ferocity that is usually reserved for President Trump attacking America’s greatest allies. It is clear that both candidates believe that winning this primary is worth whatever cost it incurs, regardless of how moral, ethical, or unprecedented that cost is. What is less clear is how this behavior will affect whichever candidate emerges victorious.
This is not the behavior that helped Governor Nathan Deal win his primary in 2010, nor is it the behavior that helped former Governor Sonny Perdue win his primary in 2002. It is, however, precisely the behavior that helped Trump win his primary in 2016. Of course, Georgia’s electorate is not precisely that of the United States as a whole, nor is Democratic nominee Stacey Abrams the same as former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Cagle and Kemp have cozied up to Trump and emulated his style, but Trump aside, voters are not always so keen to elect blustering, bomb-throwing politicians.
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