By Bo Erickson
MARIETTA, Georgia, July 22 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump will campaign in Georgia on Wednesday amid Republican concerns that his renewed focus on election fraud claims could hurt the party's chances in one of the country's most competitive Senate races.
Trump's trip follows months of attacks on Georgia's election system, which he has criticized since his 2020 loss in the state. Since January, the president has questioned the state's voting system at least nine times during public
events and interviews, according to a Reuters review.
In a June podcast, Trump said the 2020 election in Georgia was "rigged." Days later, during a telephone rally for the state's Republican gubernatorial nominee, Trump said: "Our elections are corrupt."
The president's rally in Marietta, a politically competitive suburb north of Atlanta, will be his first campaign stop since a prime-time White House speech last week in which he questioned the security of elections nationwide.
Some Georgia Republicans worry Trump's message could backfire in November's midterm elections, when control of Congress is at stake, by making his supporters less likely to vote in the belief the results might not be accurately counted.
"Any conversations about election fraud hurts Republicans in Georgia," said Eric Johnson, the former Republican leader of the Georgia Senate, who is state chair for RightCount, a conservative group that defends state-administered elections.
"President Trump’s supporters are less likely to turn out when he casts doubt on the validity on the election process," Johnson said.
White House spokeswoman Liz Huston said Trump will use the Georgia rally to highlight his pro-family policies, such as tax breaks and savings accounts, that give "every American child a head start in life, a nest egg to grow up with, and a real stake in their own future.”
ELECTION SECURITY TURNS INTO MIDTERMS ISSUE
The 2020 election, which Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden, remains a central focus for the Republican president, particularly in Georgia. Trump administration officials have launched investigations into the state's handling of the vote.
Georgia Democrat Jon Ossoff, who along with fellow Georgia Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock won seats held by Republicans in 2021 runoff elections, is running for reelection to the Senate this year. Ossoff has sparred with his Republican opponent, U.S. Representative Mike Collins, 59, over election security.
Ossoff has challenged Trump's voting claims and called him the "world’s most famous sore loser."
“As prices keep climbing for families, the failed President is coming to Georgia tomorrow to surely repeat his debunked election conspiracies," an Ossoff campaign spokesperson said in a statement.
"Republicans dread the President reheating his personal grievances and making it even harder for them in Georgia because they know he will only mobilize voters to rebuke him in November.”
Collins, who is expected to appear with Trump on Wednesday, has backed the president's push for stricter voting requirements. He told CNN in June that he believes Trump won the 2020 race in Georgia. Multiple recounts by the state confirmed his defeat.
“Election integrity is not a left or right issue, it's a deeply American issue. Ensuring voters are eligible and, in fact, are American citizens is vital to our democracy, and something that the vast majority of Americans support," Collins said in a statement.
A Fox News poll in July showed Ossoff leading Collins by 13 percentage points among registered voters.
Georgia law requires voters to show identification to vote. After the 2020 election, the state's Republican leaders also passed voting rules that limited ballot drop boxes and absentee ballots.
Despite these changes, Mary Clarice Hathaway, the Republican Party chair of Cobb County where Trump is speaking, said election security remains a "big concern" for Republican voters and has led some in the party to question whether they should vote at all.
"Everybody should show up to the polls," Hathaway said. "Sitting at home doesn't help anybody."
(Reporting by Bo Erickson in Marietta, Georgia; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Cynthia Osterman)
