By Pat Donahue, Coastal Courier

GLENNVILLE – Wayne Dasher’s annual tribute to law enforcement at his pondhouse also draws some of the biggest names in state politics, especially during an election, and three of the candidates looking to replace Brian Kemp as governor made the rounds last week.

Kemp, who is term limited, cannot run for re-election as governor, throwing open the seat, and several fellow Republicans – along with several Democrats – are running for the position. Current Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and businessman Rick Jackson courted potential supporters and voters at Dasher’s annual celebration.

Jones, who has been leading in most polls and was one of the early entrants into the race, said he believes momentum is on his campaign’s side.

“Everywhere we go, we’re getting big crowds,” he said. “It’s all the signs of someone who’s got a lot of momentum. We’ve gone around talking about what we’ve done for Georgia and what we plan on doing in the future.”

Jones served in the state Senate before running for, and winning, the lieutenant governor’s position in 2022. He also has earned the endorsement of President Trump. Jones doesn’t know if the president will join him on the campaign trail for the primary but is confident the president will campaign for him in the fall, if he wins the primary.

Jones said he was proud to support the men and women in public safety.

“We’ve always been strong on public safety,” he said.

Jones and Jackson, a health care executive who was a late entrant into the race, have been lobbing explosive attack ads at one another.

“It’s been lie after lie coming out of that campaign,” Jones said of Jackson. “The guy’s just not honest. I’m a pretty open book. Everything he’s dragging out on me is a complete lie. We’re going to start telling the truth about his shady deals and organizations.”

Jackson, who has not held political office and touts himself as a self-made billionaire, said he’s drawn inspiration from President Trump.

“I am running as a business person and an outsider,” he said. “Running the government with discipline and organization and efficiency is a great idea. I can get along with anybody. I’m not running as a tough guy. I’m running as somebody who takes action.”

Jackson, who grew up in foster homes, has shot to the lead in some of the early polls. He’s also portraying himself as “old school law and order,” but too often, law enforcement is on the front lines in dealing with mental health issues.

“We are putting them in an impossible situation with the mental health issues they face,” Jackson said. “That has to be solved, so they can go back to their job of law enforcement.”

Jackson has likened himself to President Trump, a businessman who had no previous political experience, and espouses the president’s stances on many issues, especially immigration.

But it’s Jones, whose campaign started last summer, who has the president’s backing in the race.

“He didn’t know me back then. I get that,” Jackson said of Trump. “When I win, you’ll find out that I’m President Trump’s favorite governor.”

Raffensperger, the two-term secretary of state, has been a frequent target of President Trump’s ire, particularly after the 2020 election. He has consistently come in third in the polls behind Jackson and Jones. Attorney General Chris Carr, who also is running for governor, did not attend the rally.

Raffensperger said he is running to make Georgia is affordable and safe.

“One way of making Georgia affordable is by creating great paying jobs, capping property taxes for everyone and eliminating non-essential taxes on property for seniors,” he said.

Raffensperger also wants to eliminate retirement taxes, putting a stop to taxes on retirement benefits. He also is calling for a cap on property taxes.

“We need proper tax reform,” he said. “That’s something I’ll tackle on day one.”

He also has backed signing bonuses and retention bonuses for law enforcement officers and said he would double the public safety grants for schools to $100,000.

While there are still questions from Trump supporters on the 2020 results, Raffensperger said his office – which also oversees elections – is efficient and accurate. He cited a University of Georgia poll conducted after the 2024 elections that revealed 92% of all Georgians, and 94% of all Republicans in the state, trusted the elections.

“Accountability is a good thing in elections,” he said. “We want people to trust the process.”

Like his predecessor in his current office, Raffensperger is hoping to springboard into the governor’s seat from the secretary of state office – and he wants to continue Gov. Kemp’s initiatives to support rural Georgia.

“We are going to bring back so much of that manufacturing,” he said, adding that 75% of the manufacturing coming back to Georgia has gone to rural areas. “I am going to make sure rural areas continue to prosper and are not hollowed out.”

Also on the Republican ballot are Clarke Dean, Gregg Kirkpatrick, Savannah’s Ken Yasger and Thomas Williams.