A MAGA candidate has found himself embroiled in controversy after he was caught peddling the same high-profile campaign endorsements as his opponent.
Rep. Mike Collins, who is battling former football coach Derek Dooley in a heated GOP primary runoff in the Georgia Senate race, has repeatedly listed sheriffs, commissioners, and local officials as supporters—even as several of them publicly backed his opponent or said they never approved the endorsement at all.
Among the officials tied to the endorsement confusion was Wayne County Sheriff Chuck Moseley, whose name appeared on Collins’ campaign website before later being removed.
“I’ve already talked to them twice. They’ve had their opportunity to correct it, and they haven’t,” Moseley told the Daily Caller.
Moseley made clear he was never in Collins’ corner.
“I wouldn’t vote for [Collins] if he’s the only one running,” the sheriff added.
Mike Collins’ office did not immediately respond to The Daily Beast’s request for comment.
Other officials claimed they were blindsided to discover their names attached to Collins’ campaign.
GOP Grady County Chair Jeff Jolly told the outlet he questioned County Sheriff Earl Prince and County Commissioner Sam Kines after seeing them listed as Collins supporters.
“I talked to each of them in private, and I said, ‘Look, you do what you want to do, but for my own sake, I need to know why you endorsed Mike Collins,’” Jolly said. “Both of them looked at me funny, like, ‘What are you talking about?’ They didn’t know anything about it.’”
Prince told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution he had “never spoken to Mike Collins or any of his people.”
Kines similarly said he was shocked to discover his name had appeared on Collins’ endorsement page after what he described as nothing more than a “generic reply” to a campaign event invite.
“I didn’t think nothing else about it,” Kines told the outlet. Kines has since thrown his support behind Dooley, calling him “the leading one that I would vote for.”
Worth County Sheriff Don Whitaker was also listed on Collins’ website despite backing Dooley. Unlike some of the others, Whitaker attributed the issue to a communication breakdown rather than intentional deception.
“I have no problems with them, but I believe it was a miscommunication,” Whitaker told the AJC. After speaking with Collins’ campaign team, Whitaker said his name will be removed from the endorsement list. “Obviously, it wasn’t. I am endorsing Derek Dooley,” he said of the congressional hopeful.
Not every disputed endorsement stemmed from confusion. Some officials acknowledged they had simply changed sides during the race.
Jutt Howard, who appeared in Collins campaign posts last July, later surfaced in Dooley’s campaign posts. Howard told the Caller he initially backed Collins before ultimately switching his support to Dooley after reconsidering the race.
The endorsement drama erupted just days after Collins’ campaign faced backlash over a crude social media post tied to rape allegations involving former Today host Matt Lauer.
Last week, a Dooley campaign adviser celebrated polling showing Collins’ lead narrowing in the GOP primary. A “Mike Collins War Room” account tied to Collins’ campaign responded by writing: “Matt Laurer’s [sic] sloppy seconds chiming in to take an L.”
The post sparked immediate outrage because the adviser’s wife had previously accused Lauer of rape before later attempting suicide.
Now the two Republicans are barreling toward a tense June 16 runoff after Collins captured 41 percent of the vote in the May 19 primary while Dooley pulled in 30 percent.
The winner will advance to challenge Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in November.
