ATLANTA (AP) \u2014 Former Republican and onetime Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan is running as a Democrat for governor, a remarkable step for a staunch critic of President Donald Trump who left the conservative fold in a region where party switchers have gone the other direction for generations.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve never wavered in taking on Trump. So Georgia Republicans threw me out of their party,\u201d Duncan said in his announcement video released Tuesday. \u201cI was leaving anyway. Now I\u2019m running for governor as a proud Democrat.\u201d<\/p>\n
A 50-year-old resident of a Republican stronghold north of Atlanta, Duncan joins an already crowded Democratic field. Top candidates include former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms<\/a>, state Sen. Jason Esteves<\/a> and former labor commissioner Michael Thurmond<\/a>. <\/p>\n Duncan pitches himself as the most electable Democrat in a state that still leans slightly Republican. On policy, he plans to focus on health care and cost-of-living issues. And he plays up opposition to the GOP\u2019s Trumpian turn. <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s time to win,\u201d Duncan told The Associated Press on Tuesday in a phone interview. \u201cI\u2019m the only one who can who can bring Democrats, independents and disgusted Republicans to vote for us in November \u201926.\u201d<\/p>\n Duncan served as lieutenant governor after a term in the state House<\/p>\n Duncan won the state\u2019s second-highest office in 2018 after one term in the state House. Two years later, Democrat Joe Biden eked out a victory in a state Republicans had dominated. <\/p>\n Kemp and other key Georgia Republicans spurned Trump\u2019s efforts to overturn the 2020 results, but Duncan was maybe the most outspoken opponent.<\/p>\n Kemp endured opposition from Trump, thrashing a Trump-endorsed challenger in the 2022 GOP primary on his way to again defeating Democrat Stacey Abrams. But Duncan opted against reelection to instead become a paid CNN contributor as a former elected Republican who opposed Trumpism. The state GOP formally excommunicated Duncan in January, citing acts including speaking at the 2024 Democratic National Convention in favor of Vice President Kamala Harris<\/p>\n \u201cFor someone who once proclaimed himself to be about principle over politics, it turns out the only principle that guides Geoff Duncan is his insatiable appetite for attention,\u201d state Republican Party Chairman Josh McKoon said Tuesday.<\/p>\n Duncan argues it\u2019s the party that changed, not him. \u201cI\u2019m still the same Geoff Duncan that knocked on doors and told folks that I was going to do it a different way,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m the only one in this race who\u2019s pushed back on Donald Trump as hard as I have and been as consistent as I have, and I think that\u2019s an important part of this narrative,\u201d he said. \u201cMillions of Georgians wake up every day embarrassed and disgusted by Donald Trump\u2019s toxic, disruptive leadership style.\u201d<\/p>\n Duncan faces questions about support of 2019 state law banning most abortions<\/p>\n Some of Duncan\u2019s achievements as lieutenant governor may appeal to Democrats, like brokering a state hate crimes law<\/a> and supporting foster care improvements. But a candidate who boasted in 2018 of being \u201c100% pro-life\u201d faces sharp questions about his support of a 2019 state law banning most abortions<\/a>. Duncan now says \u201cI think women do deserve the right to choose,\u201d saying he\u2019s gained \u201cperspective\u201d since the law passed.<\/p>\n Duncan explains his party switch in moral terms as well as political terms, saying he could \u201clove my neighbor\u201d better as a Democrat.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery day there was somebody else that we weren\u2019t allowed to talk to, we weren\u2019t allowed to work with, we weren\u2019t allowed to problem solve with,\u201d Duncan said. \u201cAnd that just became a zero-sum game for me. Democrats have a much bigger tool bag of tools to use to help folks in need.\u201d<\/p>\n He cites GOP opposition to tighter gun regulations and expansion of Medicaid health insurance as other examples of Republican orthodoxy he no longer supports. <\/p>\n A crowded Democratic field is seeking the nomination<\/p>\n