President Trump Monday criticized Jon Ossoff, the Democratic front-runner in the race to replace Tom Price as the representative from Georgia’s 6th Congressional District, as “super liberal.”
“The super Liberal Democrat in the Georgia Congressioal (sic) race tomorrow wants to protect criminals, allow illegal immigration and raise taxes!” Trump tweeted.
The super Liberal Democrat in the Georgia Congressioal race tomorrow wants to protect criminals, allow illegal immigration and raise taxes!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2017
The special election to replace Price, now the secretary of health and human services under Trump, is set for Tuesday. Ossoff is currently the leading candidate but is not polling above 50 percent, which is the amount of the vote he would need to avoid a run-off election.
In the special election, candidates from all parties are voted on at the same time. If no candidate gets above 50 percent, then the top two candidates head to a run-off election against each other.
There are multiple Republican candidates in the race currently splitting the vote, but the latest polls from Georgia show the combined Republican vote is higher than the combined Democratic vote.
The national media sees the special election as a sort of referendum on Trump’s first months in office.
Democrats were enthused by a smaller-than-expected defeat in a special election in Kansas last week to replace CIA Director Mike Pompeo as the Republican candidate only won by 7 percentage points. Pompeo had won that seat by 30 points in 2016.
