GOP rivals for Georgia Senate seat make battle official

ATLANTA (AP) — Two Georgia Republicans duking it out in a special U.S. Senate election paid their fees and filed paperwork to appear on the Nov. 3 ballot Monday, the first day of candidate qualifying in the state.

The early entries make official the head-to-head fight between recently appointed Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler and Rep. Doug Collins, a GOP congressman challenging Loeffler for the seat.

The two competed for attention with back-to-back news conferences at the state Capitol on Monday as both announced they had officially qualified to run. The race won’t be filtered by party primaries, meaning multiple Democrats and Republicans will share the ballot.

Loeffler was joined by Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who appointed her to the seat following the retirement of Republican Johnny Isakson, who left the Senate at the end of December because of declining health.

“I’m so honored to serve Georgia, and I’m thrilled to qualify for the race in November,” Loeffler said. “I’m running to win.”

Loeffler made little mention of Collins, who had just wrapped up speaking to reporters in the same room minutes earlier.

Collins announced in late January that he would challenge Loeffler for the seat, splitting Republican interests in the process. He took an opening shot Monday at Loeffler’s campaign, saying: “Bring it on.”

“We’re ready for this. Georgia knows who the conservative is in this race. They’ve been watching, they know that I’ve been fighting for the values that they hold dear,” Collins said.

Collins qualifying announcement means he’s moving full steam ahead in the Senate race and will give up his seat in the U.S. House. It also signals that President Donald Trump’s efforts to broker a deal and spare the GOP from the...