Campaign

Herschel Walker says he doesn’t support ‘either’ Kemp or Perdue

by Caroline Vakil - 02/23/22 4:36 PM ET

Georgia Senate candidate Herschel Walker (R) says that he does not support “either” Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) or former Sen. David Perdue (R) in the state’s gubernatorial race, saying “I’m mad at both of them.”

Walker was asked at a University of North Georgia student gathering on Monday whom he supported in the Georgia governor’s race. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution obtained audio of his response to the gathering, saying he did not support Kemp or Perdue.

“I don’t support either one of them. I’m mad at both of them,” Walker responded, according to the recording. “I speak the truth and let me tell you why. I’ve known Gov. Kemp since I was 16 years old. I’ve known Sen. Perdue since I was 19, and this is what I want to say to everyone here: I want to bring this party together. We got to bring this party together.”

“What has happened now is some people get sour grapes and they don’t get out and vote. But I want to say this to whoever loses that race — whether it’s Gov. Kemp or Sen. Perdue — he needs to tell his people to go vote for the other,” he added.

Walker is “100 percent focused on uniting the party post-primary,” a Walker campaign aide told the news outlet regarding Walker’s comments.

Walker’s comments come as Kemp is campaigning for his political life after former President Trump endorsed Perdue in the governor’s race late last year. Kemp drew ire from the former president after he resisted efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia, where President Biden had won.

While Trump has derided Kemp as a “weak governor,” the Georgia incumbent may not need Trump’s blessing in order to fare well in the Republican primary, which is set for later in May.

Polling conducted by Quinnipiac University last month found Kemp leading Perdue in the governor’s race, with him getting the backing of 43 percent of likely Republican voters surveyed compared with Perdue’s 36 percent.

The Hill has reached out to the Walker, Kemp and Perdue campaigns for comment.