MACON, Ga. — Brian Kemp saved his most prominent surrogate for last.
President Donald Trump is headlining a get-out-the-vote rally for the Republican gubernatorial nominee at the Middle Georgia Regional Airport on Sunday afternoon.
Trump’s trip comes as polls continue to show Kemp neck and neck against Democrat Stacey Abrams for the state’s top office.
The president’s visit comes two days after former President Barack Obama headlined an Atlanta rally for Abrams that drew thousands of supporters. Vice President Mike Pence and talk show icon Oprah Winfrey have also made campaign appearances in Georgia over the past week.
Kemp is hoping the commander-in-chief’s appearance can help motivate supporters in a part of the state that overwhelmingly backed Trump in 2016.
Trump has been a dominant political force in Georgia, a state he won by roughly 5 percentage points two years ago. His surprise endorsement of the secretary of state helped turbocharge Kemp’s victory over Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle in the July primary runoff.
Trump has visited the state twice this year, to survey damage from Hurricane Michael and attend the Georgia-Alabama national championship football game back in January. His last campaign-focused trip was in April 2017, when he spoke at a National Rifle Association meeting in Atlanta and fundraised for then-congressional hopeful Karen Handel.