Republican Georgia State Sen. Greg Dolezal will enter a crowded primary race to serve as the state’s next lieutenant governor, the Daily Caller News Foundation has learned.
Dolezal, a four-term state legislator who led the push to keep biological males out of women’s sports in Georgia, is expected to announce his candidacy for the state’s second-highest political office this week, according to a source familiar with his plans. The state senator plans to invest $5 million of his own money into the race to succeed Republican Georgia Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, who is running for governor.
Dolezal has served in the Georgia State Senate since 2019 during which he sponsored legislation to create a special committee to investigate allegations of misconduct involving Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney who brought election interference charges against President Donald Trump. The Georgia State Senate extended the special committee in January
Dolezal also sponsored the “Riley Gaines Act of 2025,” which bars biological males from participating in women’s sports and requires public schools and colleges across Georgia to enforce single-sex restrooms, locker rooms and changing areas based on biological sex. Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed the legislation, named after former collegiate swimmer and women’s sports advocate Riley Gaines, into law in late April.
Dolezal also serves as the chair of the Senate Transportation Committee and Senate Majority chief deputy whip.
The state senator is a longtime supporter of Trump. Dolezal was one of four state senators in 2020 to buck Kemp and organize a written petition that would have forced a special session to appoint a different slate of presidential electors.
Dolezal endorsed Trump’s 2024 presidential bid ahead of the New Hampshire primary. The state senator has spoken at multiple Trump campaign events and has donated to the president’s political operation.
Other GOP candidates in Georgia’s 2026 race for lieutenant governor include State Rep. David Clark, alongside State Sens. Blake Tillery, Steve Gooch and John Kennedy. Democratic Georgia State Sen. Josh McLaurin similarly announcedhis candidacy for lieutenant governor in May.
Trump’s endorsement is likely to prove decisive in the Republican primary if he chooses to weigh in on the lieutenant governor contest.
The president publicly backed Jones’ gubernatorial bid in August. Jones, who previously served in the state senate, notably joined Dolezal in calling for a special session to investigate the election results in 2020. He is facing Republican Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, who defied Trump in 2020, in the primary contest.
Brandon Beach, another one of the four Republican state senators who advocated for a special session in 2020, was appointed by Trump to serve as the head of the U.S. Treasury in March.
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