Trump visits Georgia, a target of his election falsehoods, as Republicans look for midterm boost

Politics

In the opening minutes of his first stop at a local restaurant, the president raised the prospect of voter fraud without evidence, talked up his plan to require voters to show identification before casting ballots, and discussed the recent FBI raid of election offices in the state’s most populous county.

By JEFF AMY and STEVE PEOPLES, Associated Press

February 19, 2026 | 4:05 PM

4 minutes to read

ROME, Ga. (AP) — The White House insisted that President Donald Trump was visiting Georgia to promote the economy.

But in the opening minutes of his first stop at a local restaurant, the president raised the prospect of voter fraud without evidence, talked up his plan to require voters to show identification before casting ballots, and discussed the recent FBI raid of election offices in the state’s most populous county.

“They came in, they took all those ballots; all those crooked ballots were taken,” Trump said. “And the Democrats are fighting like hell. They don’t want anyone to see those ballots. Let’s see what happens.”

He added, “We’re going to clean it up.”

The White House has long said Trump would focus more on the economy, and he frequently complains that he doesn’t get enough credit for it. But recent months have been dominated by other issues, including deadly clashes during deportation efforts in Minneapolis, potential military action in Iran, and his false claims that the 2020 election was stolen.

Trump’s destination in Georgia suggests he has something else on his mind, too. After his stop at The Varsity Restaurant, he headed to a steel company in the congressional district previously represented by Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former supporter who resigned in January after feuding with Trump.

There’s a special election to replace her on March 10.

As another reminder of Trump’s divided attention, Trump opened Thursday focusing on one of his passion projects. He joined representatives from some of the more than two dozen countries that have joined his Board of Peace, a diplomatic initiative to potentially supplant the United Nations.

Vice President JD Vance, in a nod to domestic politics heading into the midterm elections, tried to sell the Board of Peace as a win for the American people.

“The reason that we’re here today is yes to save lives and yes to promote peace, but this creates incredible prosperity for the American people,” Vance said Thursday morning, suggesting that the countries represented on the board represent “trillions of dollars of investment” in the U.S.

False claims of voter fraud

The Georgia visit comes less than a month after federal agents seized voting records and ballots from Fulton County, home to the state’s largest collection of Democrats.

Trump has long seen Georgia as central to his false claim that the 2020 election was stolen by Democrats and President Joe Biden, a fabrication that he reiterated Wednesday during a White House reception on Black History Month.

“We won by millions of votes but they cheated,” Trump said.

Audits, state officials, courts and Trump’s own former attorney general have all rejected the idea of widespread problems that could have altered the election.

Some Republicans are now pushing for Georgia’s State Election Board, which has a Trump-aligned majority, to take control of elections in Fulton County — a step enabled by a controversial state law passed in 2021. But it’s unclear if or when the board will act.

Leavitt, in the White House, said Wednesday that Trump was “exploring his options” when it comes to a potential executive order he teased on social media over the weekend designed to address voter fraud.

Trump described Democrats as “horrible, disingenuous CHEATERS” in the post, which is pinned to the top of his social media account. He also said that Republicans should feature such claims “at the top of every speech.”

Scott Johnson of Marietta, a longtime GOP leader in Georgia who gathered at the Coosa Steel Corporation in Rome to see the president, said “the economy is a winning issue for us.”

He’s not so sure that boosting claims of election fraud from 2020 is a good idea.

“I’m not concerned about relitigating the past. I’m concerned about moving forward in the future,” he said.

Greene has not gone quiet

Trump may be distracted by fresh attacks from Greene, once among the president’s most vocal allies in Congress and now one of his loudest conservative critics.

In a social media post ahead of Trump’s visit, Greene noted that the White House and Republican leaders met earlier in the week to develop an effective midterm message. She suggested they were “on the struggle bus” and blamed them for health insurance costs that ballooned this year.

“Approximately 75,000 households in my former district had their health insurance double or more on January 1st of this year because the ACA tax credits expired and Republicans have absolutely failed to fix our health insurance system that was destroyed by Obamacare,” she said. “And you can call me all the petty names you want, I don’t worship a man. I’m not in a cult.”

Early voting has already begun in the special election to replace Greene, and the leading Republican candidates have fully embraced Trump.

Trump was traveling on Thursday with his preferred candidate, Clay Fuller, a district attorney who prosecutes crimes in four counties. Fuller described Trump’s endorsement as “rocket fuel” for his candidacy in a weekend interview and vowed to maintain an America First agenda even if he remains in Congress after Trump is no longer president.

Other candidates include Republican former state Sen. Colton Moore, who made a name for himself with a vociferous attack on Trump’s prosecution in Georgia. Moore, the favorite of many far-right activists, said he’s been in communication with Trump even after Trump endorsed Fuller, calling the choice “unfortunate.”

“I think he’s the greatest president of our lifetimes,” Moore said.

The top Democrat in the race is Shawn Harris, who unsuccessfully ran against Greene in 2024. Democrats voice hope for an upset, but the district is rated as the most Republican district in Georgia by the Cook Political Report.