GEORGIA — Republican candidate Rick Jackson qualified on March 6 at the Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta to run in the May 19 primary for governor of Georgia, speaking to reporters afterward. Jackson entered the race in February and announced he would spend $30 million to win the Republican nomination.

Jackson has since been airing campaign advertisements across broadcast, social media and streaming platforms in Georgia. In one ad, he pledged that unauthorized immigrants who commit violent crimes would be deported or departed if he is elected governor. "Too often, criminal illegals commit sick, violent crimes, victimize our children and get away with murder. So here's my guarantee to them: do that when I'm governor, and you'll end up deported or departed. Any questions?" Jackson said in the advertisement. The ad uses imagery of the murderer of college nursing student Laken Riley.

In another advertisement, Jackson described gender-affirming care for transgender children as mutilation and irreversible. That ad shows a child on a gurney being wheeled down a hospital hallway flanked by doctors and nurses. Georgia passed a law in 2023 prohibiting gender reassignment surgery and the administration of puberty blockers to individuals under 18. A separate Jackson campaign ad pledged to criminalize reverse discrimination in the state. Federal law prohibits discrimination in housing and employment, though Georgia does not have a comprehensive state-level law banning private-sector employment racial discrimination against any race.

Jackson's main rival is Georgia Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones, who led in polls for the Republican nomination at the time Jackson announced his candidacy. President Donald Trump endorsed Jones in the primary. Jones served as Trump's chief campaign lieutenant in Georgia in the 2024 election and was involved in the so-called "fake elector" scheme in the Trump criminal case.

Jones accused Jackson of profiting from state contracts worth $1 billion and said one of Jackson's firms, Locum Tenens, profited by recruiting for Planned Parenthood. He also said Locum Tenens profited by helping doctors perform transgender procedures on minors.

Jackson filed a defamation lawsuit against Jones, describing the accusations as lies. He also filed a separate lawsuit challenging a Georgia law that allows Jones to chair a leadership committee that can raise and spend unlimited contributions for his gubernatorial campaign, while Jackson remains subject to traditional fundraising caps.

On the last day of the legislative session, Jones pushed a bill that would bar individuals with state government healthcare contracts from running for public office. The two candidates are scheduled to debate on April 27, ahead of the May 19 primary.