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Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff ruled out a 2028 presidential run during a televised debate on Tuesday night, stating firmly that his focus remains on winning re-election to the Senate. Ossoff made the declaration while facing Republican challenger Representative Mike Collins in the second debate of their nationally watched Georgia Senate race.
“I have zero interest in running for president,” Ossoff said when a moderator asked him directly. “I’m not running for president. I’m running for re-election to the Senate.”
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Ossoff has frequently appeared in discussions about potential Democratic presidential contenders for 2028. However, he stressed Tuesday that winning the presidency would require giving up his Senate seat — something he made clear he would not do. He is currently seeking a second six-year term representing Georgia.
Collins Pushes Back on Ossoff’s Denial
Collins dismissed Ossoff’s statement and quipped that his opponent was actually positioning himself for a presidential campaign. Collins called him “your DSA candidate,” referencing the Democratic Socialists of America.
After the brief exchange, Ossoff quickly shifted focus to Collins’ support for President Donald Trump’s tariffs. Tariffs have been a central theme of Ossoff’s campaign and also dominated the first debate between the two candidates last week. The Atlanta Press Club organized Tuesday’s second debate.
White Nationalist Posts and Heated Exchanges
The debate covered a wide range of topics, including data centers, the economy under Trump, the war in Iran, and a controversy involving Collins’ son-in-law. Ossoff raised the issue of Collins’ son-in-law promoting white nationalist content on social media.
Ossoff asked Collins directly whether he considered himself a “white nationalist.” Collins rejected the label. “I condemn any sort of hate speech,” Collins said. “Antisemitism, hate of any kind. It’s abhorrent.”
Ossoff pressed further, questioning how Collins could allow someone in his own household to spread what he described as neo-Nazi propaganda while running for Senate. “The paper reported it’s still going on today,” Ossoff added.
Collins did not address the accusation directly. Instead, he argued that Ossoff’s rhetoric had contributed to a threatening environment. He pointed to a New York man currently in jail, accused of making death threats against Collins. “I’m a little tired of this, Jon,” Collins said. “This crazy person is in jail right now because of your rhetoric.”
2020 Election and Donor Controversies
Collins also returned to a line of attack from last week’s debate, repeatedly raising the name of Reid Hoffman. Hoffman is a major donor to Democratic causes, including political committees aligned with Ossoff. Collins noted that Hoffman’s name appeared in the Epstein files. Ossoff did not directly respond to the accusation.
Meanwhile, Collins again declined to answer whether Joe Biden legitimately won the 2020 presidential election. Moderators asked him about an audio recording of a call in which Trump asked Georgia Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find 11,780 votes” to help overturn the 2020 election result. Collins avoided a direct answer. “You know, Joe Biden went into office, and boy, Georgians paid for it,” he said.
Throughout the hourlong debate, neither candidate directly answered the other’s charges on several key points. Trump’s approval rating, which currently sits at record lows, also featured as a backdrop to the broader economic debate between the two candidates.
