Trump last week pulled his endorsement of Mo Brooks in Alabama due to Brooks' poor polling.
Former U.S. Senator and Republican candidate for Governor of Georgia David Perdue waves to supporters of former U.S. President Donald Trump after speaking at a rally at the Banks County Dragway on March 26, 2022 in Commerce, Georgia. This event is a part of Trump's Save America Tour around the United States.With primaries inching ever closer, Trump has been hitting the road to rally for his chosen candidates.
In choosing endorsements, Trump considers the candidate's polling and fundraising, and he keeps a close eye on debates and weighs how well candidates may be able to implement his vision for the GOP, according to people familiar with his decision process. In the case of Georgia, strategists say Trump underestimated the power of Kemp's incumbency, and the ways in which GOP primary voters there may be more focused on the present than the past.
The fact that Trump's endorsement hasn't been clearing the field in races is a sign to some GOP operatives that Trump, while still the most powerful force in Republican politics, has lost some influence. "You've got to say, 'let's keep going' because there is now a blueprint out there," the operative said, citing McCrory's standing as an example of how to stay competitive in a race where Trump has backed someone else."It's not game over."
Billionaire Peter Thiel, who donated large amounts of money to efforts supporting the Trump campaign in 2020, is supporting Vance in Ohio and Blake Masters in Arizona. Super PACs supporting Vance and Masters have used Trump pollster Tony Fabrizio. In Arizona, a firm started by former Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien and Trump campaign lawyer Justin Clark is helping Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich.