Trump makes nice with Kemp but hasn’t convinced governor to hand over campaign cash

Former President Donald Trump has been making nice with Gov. Brian Kemp (R-GA), but that truce has not materialized into campaign funds from the governor's successful political operation.

Kemp's political machine in Georgia, which helped him win reelection in the Peach State in 2022, is a powerful tool, but despite Trump's change of heart toward Kemp, campaign funds from Kemp are not being used to secure the state for the former president for various reasons. Cody Hall, an adviser to Kemp, said on the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's podcast Politically Georgia that the machine is geared toward keeping the state legislature in Republican hands, targeting key swing-state districts.

Hall noted that the "almost $2 million to turn out the vote" that the Kemp political machine is spending on boosting state legislative candidates in key districts will help statewide races by promoting Republicans generally. He also said there are legal and financial limitations, noting that with Kemp's reelection bid in 2022, it spent $8 million but that it does not have that level of funds in 2024.

“The Kemp organization, at this point, doesn’t have that cash on hand. And you have to think through legally how, structurally, you do this,” Hall said on the podcast. "Our state leadership committee is not allowed to spend funds on federal candidates, so there would also be those questions to work through."

Trump has had a fraught relationship with Kemp since the former president lost the Peach State in the 2020 election and Kemp refused to reject the results that showed Trump had lost the state. The former president has pingponged between complimenting and lobbing attacks at Kemp throughout the past four years, but he made nice with him recently in a post on Truth Social and X.

Thank you to @BrianKempGA for all of your help and support in Georgia, where a win is so important to the success of our Party and, most importantly, our Country.

I look forward to working with you, your team, and all of my friends in Georgia to help MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!

"Thank you to @BrianKempGA for all of your help and support in Georgia, where a win is so important to the success of our Party and, most importantly, our Country. I look forward to working with you, your team, and all of my friends in Georgia to help MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!" Trump posted on Thursday.

Kemp has largely avoided squabbles with Trump and won reelection in 2022 despite the former president endorsing a primary challenger in the gubernatorial race.

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Georgia is considered one of the key battleground states for control of the White House in November.

Trump leads Harris, 48.1% to 47.1%, in the RealClearPolitics polling average in the Peach State. The Cook Political Report has rated Georgia as a "toss-up."