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Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms and Republican Rick Jackson faced off Tuesday night in their only scheduled debate of Georgia’s 2025 gubernatorial race. The two candidates clashed sharply on economic policy, data centers, and President Donald Trump, with Election Day now just four weeks away and early voting set to begin next week.
Public polls show the race remains extremely tight. Bottoms, the former mayor of Atlanta and a former Biden administration official, is running neck-and-neck with Jackson, a billionaire healthcare executive. The hourlong, town-hall-style debate drew questions from both live and taped voter submissions and remained largely civil throughout.
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Trump Takes Center Stage
One of the sharpest exchanges of the night centered on Trump. Bottoms attacked Jackson directly over his public praise of the president.
“My opponent has said he wants to be Trump’s favorite governor. He wants to be Trump with a Southern tone. He said there’s not a single policy that he disagrees with Trump on,” Bottoms said. She made the remarks while responding to a question about the Trump administration’s cuts to federal funding.
Jackson pushed back firmly. “I don’t owe anybody anything,” he said. “Nobody’s ever told me what to do.” He also added, “I will stand up to Donald Trump when necessary. I’m not running to be his favorite governor.”
Jackson repeatedly invoked outgoing Governor Brian Kemp, who is term-limited and remains popular in the state. “I will stand up to anybody, just like Brian Kemp has done. He works with both parties, both presidents, and he stands up when he disagrees,” Jackson said.
Trump had endorsed Jackson’s Republican primary rival, Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones. Despite that, Jackson worked to align himself with the MAGA movement during the primary. However, since winning the Republican nomination in June, he has shifted his strategy. He now distances himself from Trump and instead draws comparisons to Kemp, who had also backed Jones.
Economic Attacks and Tax Plans
Jackson repeatedly targeted Bottoms over her record as Atlanta’s mayor. He accused her of contributing to regional inflation that he claimed outpaced national rates. He also pointed to higher crime figures in the city during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“This is the kind of policy that we cannot have in running Georgia, not having people feeling safe to go to work,” Jackson said. He added bluntly, “Bad mayors don’t make good governors.”
Both candidates faced repeated questions about how they would reduce costs for Georgia residents. The debate focused heavily on economic affordability, with housing and education also receiving attention.
Bottoms outlined proposals to cut or suspend state and local taxes on a range of everyday items, including auto insurance, groceries, hygiene products, and diapers. Jackson, meanwhile, reiterated his commitment to cutting state income taxes, property taxes, and taxes on certain utilities.
Data Centers and Surveillance Cameras
The debate also featured a pointed exchange over data centers. Bottoms repeated her call for a pause on new data center construction in Georgia. Jackson said he would not approve new construction as governor without first securing local community approval, establishing environmental standards, and obtaining commitments to reduce local power bills.
However, both candidates accused each other of hypocrisy on the issue. Bottoms charged that Jackson had personally invested in data centers. Jackson fired back, accusing Bottoms of approving data center construction during her time as mayor.
The candidates also split over Flock cameras, the controversial surveillance traffic cameras that have drawn public debate across the state. Bottoms said she was open to a moratorium on installing new Flock cameras. Jackson said he opposed such a moratorium.
Election security also came up during the debate, an issue that has shaped Georgia politics for six years. Bottoms said she was “deeply concerned about Donald Trump’s rhetoric around our elections.” Jackson, when asked whether the U.S. Justice Department should oversee Georgia’s elections, again deferred to Kemp. “I don’t think that’s necessary unless Gov. Kemp thinks it’s necessary,” he said.
Spending Gap and Political Landscape
Outside the debate hall, Jackson holds a significant financial advantage. He has poured tens of millions of his own dollars into the race and outspent Bottoms by a ratio of 7-to-1 as of last week. That gap has alarmed many Democrats, who see 2025 as a strong opportunity to flip the Georgia governorship to Democratic control for the first time in 16 years.
Nevertheless, the broader political environment may favor Bottoms. Trump currently faces negative approval ratings nationally, and many voters have expressed concern about his administration’s handling of the economy. In Georgia, a state that has trended more competitive in recent election cycles, those factors could prove significant as both candidates make their final push before Election Day.
