Gov. Nathan Deal showed little concern when asked about a challenge in 2014 from within his own party.

In fact, he almost seemed amused by the question.

“I look forward to running on my record,” he told WSB’s Sandra Parrish. “I believe it is a record that shows it has provided the kind of leadership Georgians want.”

Dalton Mayor David Pennington has taken the first step in his challenge by filing with the Georgia Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Commission which will allow him to begin raising money.

The two term mayor has criticized Deal for not doing enough to turn Georgia’s economy around, something Deal disputes.

“I think our job numbers are great,” says Deal. “177,000 since I became governor.”

Deal also cites the locations of major businesses to Georgia under his watch including Caterpillar and Baxter International.

When asked about Pennington’s criticism that he hasn’t made efforts to do away with the state’s income tax, Deal says Georgia currently ranks at the very bottom in the nation in terms of the tax burden on its citizens.

“It’s pretty hard to get better than that on taxes,” he says.

Qualifying for next summer’s primary won’t begin until April, and Pennington has said he does not plan to step down as mayor until then.