Early voting is happening right now, and Georgians have a lot to vote for. It's why Atlanta Press Club and Georgia Public Broadcasting hosted multiple debates over the last two days. But the most-watched was easily the senate debate with over 57,000 views on YouTube.
After watching the debate in full, our Georgia political reporters felt Democratic Incumbent Jon Ossoff outperformed Republican Rep. Mike Collins by directly responding to more questions and providing more measured, clear answers.
Below are highlights from Tuesday night's debate.
Is Jon Ossoff running for president?
The first question didn't avoid a conversation that's been orbiting Ossoff for months — will he seek the White House in two years? Back in August, a national poll from Emerson College showed Ossoff leading
Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in a hypothetical matchup. More recent surveys have Georgia's first Jewish senator among the top five Democrats in a potential presidential primary.
But when asked if he will serve a full six-year term if reelected, Ossoff expressed having "zero interest" in running for president in 2028.
"I'm running for re-election to the Senate, and tonight the contrast could not be clearer between these two Senate candidates," Ossoff said.
Racism and antisemitism
Much like during the first clash, Ossoff and Collins' exchange turned personal when the conversation focused on the Republican congressman's record of hiring campaign aides with a history of espousing anti-Black and antisemitic views.
"I condemn any sort of hate speech, anti-Semitism, hate of any kind (and) it's abhorrent," Collins said when asked if he were a white nationalist.
The GOP nominee immediately pivoted to spotlighting Ossoff's support for other Senate candidates, such as Abdul El-Sayed, of Michigan, and accused his Democratic rival of having a connection to influencer Hassan Piker, a popular left-wing activist who has become a lightning rod in the 2026 midterms for several controversial online comments.
Ossoff did not relent, however, once again mentioning that Collins' son-in-law reportedly shares neo-Nazi imagery online. He called Collins a "weak" person for failing to stop the postings, and asked the congressman to promise it would no longer "be produced" from his home.
In a 30-second rebuttal, Collins called out how a New York man was arrested for threatening to kill him and his son-in-law, which he said was due to Ossoff's comments. "I'm a little tired of this," he said.
Why are things so expensive?
Ossoff continuously reminded viewers how much prices have gone up and connected those costs to the Trump administration's trade war and other policy choices.
"Ground beef is up 30% since Donald Trump took office," Ossoff said. "Coffee is up 30% since Donald Trump took office, those were your votes. Tariffs you supported last week. You said the tariffs were making things fair, and I think that you should explain to Georgia voters why you voted for the tariffs and what you mean by that."
Collins, who is endorsed by Trump, at one point conceded "diesel prices are high." AAA reports the average gallon of diesel is $5.74 in Georgia. But the GOP congressman said, "supply is coming," slamming Ossoff for supporting mass transit and other environmental regulations.
"If it wasn't so, he wouldn't have voted for that Green New Deal. If it wasn't so, they wouldn't have killed the Keystone Pipeline," Collins said. "If it wasn't so, they'd be helping to to get us to where we're energy independent." He voted against that."
AI
Asked about the role of AI in the country's future, Ossoff called it the "most complex and important legislative question of our time." He called for federal inspectors and the fortification of the federal system in defense from bioterrorism.
"We have to recognize that we cannot allow the Trump administration, which is opposed to any regulation whatsoever, to put jobs at risk or our national security at risk," Ossoff said.
On Sept. 29 Trump convened six major technology companies who signed a joint commitment meant to self-regulate the safe development of AI.
Collins emphasized that the United States is in a race with China over the technology, which he said is already in many American's lives. He said if voters don't want data centers, he's oppose to the development, but would favor them being built if a community wanted one.
"The problem is there's a lot of bad actors out there in anything that you have," Collins said. "But before we even get there, we need to make sure that these data centers are not harming the local infrastructure, like the water and electricity."
Who won the 2020 election?
Multiple times during the debate Collins was asked whether Trump prevailed in the 2020 election over former President Joe Biden. He never answered yes or no, but instead said Biden "went into office," before adding "and boy, Georgians paid for it." Collins has falsely asserted Trump won Georgia six years ago during this campaign, including shortly before the Republican primary race.
Later, Collins expressed support for the administration's call to overhaul U.S. elections under the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, or SAVE America Act, which stalled in the Senate this year. The measure would have, among other things, required registered voters to present a form of approved photo identification such as a passport or driver's license before receiving a ballot.
"You know the problem is that we have voter ID here in Georgia. We do, but when offered the opportunity at least five times, Jon Ossoff voted against the SAVE Act to get voter ID for all across this country," Collins said. "Y'all, we live in the best country in the world. There's no reason we shouldn't have the most secure elections in the world."
Ossoff responded by slamming his opponent for supporting the establishment of a fund for participants in the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol. In August, a video showed Collins agreeing with a Georgia man who was convicted of charges stemming from the attack and who suggested that the rioters were "victims of a weaponized political system."
"Mike Collins is on record supporting handing your tax dollars to the violent thugs and criminals who sacked the U.S. Capitol and tried to overturn the election," Ossoff said.
Watch the Jon Ossoff Mike Collins debate
You can watch the full Georgia senate debate for yourself below:
Mike Collins, Jon Ossoff polls
- Trafalgar Group: As of Oct. 10, Ossoff 51%, Collins 43%, and Undecided 5.9%
- Wedgewood Polls: As of Oct. 4, Ossoff 55% and Collins 45%
- InsiderAdvantage: As of Sept. 25, Ossoff 50%, Collins 42%, and Undecided 8%
- YouGov: As of Sept. 23, Ossoff 52%, Collins 42%, and Undecided 6%
Election Day 2026
- First day of early voting: Oct. 13
- Last day of early voting: Oct. 30
- Election day: Nov. 3
- Runoff election day (if needed): Dec. 1
Miguel Legoas is a Deep South Connect Team Reporter for USA Today. Find him on Instagram @miguelegoas and email at mlegoas@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Who won Jon Ossoff, Mike Collins debate? Key points, issues from Tuesday
