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Republican Clay Fuller will replace former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. That's according to a race call by the Associated Press. Georgia Public Broadcasting's Sarah Kallis reports.
SARAH KALLIS, BYLINE: Congressman-elect Clay Fuller came into the race with a clear message.
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CLAY FULLER: We need an America-first fighter to stand strong for Northwest Georgia.
KALLIS: Fuller, a North Georgia district attorney, got President Trump's endorsement in a crowded special election with over a dozen candidates in March. But after no candidate got over 50% of the vote, he advanced to a runoff against Democrat Sean Harris. For voters like David Hale, Trump's endorsement carried weight in this solidly red district. He says he cast his ballot for Fuller.
DAVID HALE: He is backed by President Trump, and I hope they can work together.
KALLIS: That would be a departure from Marjorie Taylor Greene's last few months in Congress. She resigned after publicly disagreeing with Trump over the release of documents related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. This week, she criticized his handling of the war with Iran. Greene won about 64% of the vote when she last ran in 2024. Harris faced off against Greene as well in 2024. That time, the Democrat lost by about 29 percentage points. Tuesday's results show a smaller margin of victory. Fuller beat Harris by about 14 percentage points in this conservative rural and suburban district. This year, Harris's campaign catered to voters frustrated with Trump. Voter Linda Rhodes chose Harris and said she wanted change in Congress.
LINDA RHODES: I prioritize having common sense who understands the Constitution of the United States, who cares about underprivileged people, who cares about education, who cares about health care for women.
KALLIS: National Democrats, like former transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg, campaigned for Harris in the district ahead of the runoff. Aside from attracting national endorsements, the race also attracted big national money. National Republican PACs spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on Fuller's campaign, even though the district is considered a safe Republican seat. Harris' campaign also received thousands of dollars in out-of-state money. Voters in the 14th may see a Fuller-Harris rematch in November because the special election only selected a candidate to finish out the remainder of Greene's term. Both candidates have qualified to be on their respective party's ballots again in May for Georgia's primary.
For NPR News, I'm Sarah Kallis in Atlanta. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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