Jon Ossoff
Jon Ossoff (Democrat) defeated David Perdue (R) in a runoff election to represent Georgia in the U.S. Senate on January 5, 2021.
Ossoff was the CEO of an investigative media production company as of December 2020. He ran against Karen Handel (R) in the 2017 special election to represent Georgia's 6th Congressional District in the U.S. House. That race went to a runoff, where he lost 48% to 52%. It was the most expensive House race in U.S. history as of that time. Ossoff raised more than $23 million.[1]
Ossoff completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read his survey answers.
- Click here for more on the Jan. 5, 2021, Senate runoff election.
- Click here for more on the Nov. 3, 2020, Senate general election.
2020 battleground election
With Ossoff's win in the regular runoff election and Raphael Warnock's win in the special runoff election, Democrats won control of the U.S. Senate. Prior to the runoffs, Republicans had secured 50 seats and Democrats had secured 48 seats (including among them two seats held by independents who caucus with Democrats). As a result of the runoffs, Democrats and Republicans split the chamber 50-50, with the vice president (starting January 20, 2021, Democrat Kamala Harris) having the tie-breaking vote.
Ossoff became CEO of Insight TWI, a media production company producing investigative films and TV shows, in 2013. He ran in Georgia's 6th Congressional District special election in 2017. Ossoff said he would work for a public option, higher stimulus payments in response to COVID-19, a new Civil Rights Act, a $15 minimum wage, and overturning Citizens United. He said, "The health insurance, pharmaceutical, and fossil fuel industries have bought the allegiance of my opponent, Sen. David Perdue."
Perdue was elected to the Senate in 2014. Perdue said he helped bring federal COVID-19 relief funds to Georgia, fully fund the Port of Savannah, reverse regulations and create jobs, rebuild the military, protect people with pre-existing conditions, and improve medical care for veterans. A Perdue campaign ad said Ossoff, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D), and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D) had an agenda that included defunding the police, D.C. statehood, and voting rights for people in the country without legal permission.
Click here for more on candidates' key messages, backgrounds, and campaign themes.
Candidate profile
Party: Democratic Party
Incumbent: No
Submitted Biography: "I run a small business that exposes corruption, organized crime, and war crimes for news organizations worldwide. My wife Alisha is an OB/GYN physician, and we both grew up in Atlanta. I earned my Bachelor of Science degree from Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service and a Master's of Science from the London School of Economics. Before embarking upon my career in journalism and media production, I worked as a national security aide for Georgia Congressman Hank Johnson, handling defense and economic policy. Since 2013, I have been the CEO of Insight TWI, a 30-year old media production company that produces investigations of corruption, organized crime, and war crimes that are broadcast internationally to a global television audience of hundreds of millions. In recent years, we have investigated and exposed sexual slavery of women and girls by ISIS, crooked judges, foreign officials who steal U.S-funded food and medical aid, contract killers, human traffickers, war crimes, and bribery."
This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. Senate Georgia in 2020.
Polls
- See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls
The table below includes polls released in this race that meet Ballotpedia's criteria for inclusion in our coverage, including polls that disclose their methodology and the questions asked of respondents. Examples of polls we do not include are those that use interactive voice response (IVR) and online polls with unweighted results. See FiveThirtyEight for a more complete list of polls released in this race.
| U.S. Senate election in Georgia, 2020: Runoff election polls | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Date |  Perdue
|
 Ossoff
|
Undecided | Margin of error | Sample size | Sponsor | ||
| SurveyUSA | Dec. 16-20 | 46% | 51% | 3% | ± 5.1 (credibility interval) |
600 | WXIA-TV | ||
SurveyUSA broke down responses by various demographics, including the following:
- Democrats: 97% Ossoff, 2% Perdue
- Republicans: 93% Perdue, 5% Ossoff
- Independents: 53% Ossoff, 34% Perdue
- White: 67% Perdue, 31% Ossoff
- Black: 90% Ossoff, 6% Perdue
- Hispanic: 52% Ossoff, 45% Perdue
- Loeffler runoff voters: 95% Perdue, 3% Ossoff
- Warnock runoff voters: 96% Ossoff, 4% Perdue
| U.S. Senate election in Georgia, 2020: Runoff election polls | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Date | Perdue
|
Ossoff
|
Undecided | Margin of error | Sample size | Sponsor | ||
| SurveyUSA | Nov. 27-30 | 48% | 50% | 2% | ± 5.2 (credibility interval) |
583 | WXIA-TV | ||
SurveyUSA broke down responses by various demographics, including the following:
- Democrats: 94% Ossoff, 5% Perdue
- Republicans: 96% Perdue, 4% Ossoff
- Independents: 47% Ossoff, 45% Perdue
- White: 71% Perdue, 28% Ossoff
- Black: 92% Ossoff, 5% Perdue
- Loeffler runoff voters: 97% Perdue, 3% Ossoff
- Warnock runoff voters: 93% Ossoff, 6% Perdue
| Click [show] to see poll results for the Nov. 3 election | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Date | Perdue
|
Ossoff
|
 Hazel
|
Undecided | Other | Margin of error | Sample size | Sponsor |
| Morning Consult | Oct. 22-31 | 46% | 47% | -- | -- | -- | ± 2 | 1,743 | -- |
| Public Policy Polling | Oct. 27-28 | 44% | 47% | 3% | 6% | -- | ± 3.8 | 661 | -- |
| Monmouth | Oct. 23-27 | 46% | 49% | 2% | 1% | 1% | ± 4.4 | 504 | -- |
| Civiqs | Oct. 23-26 | 45% | 51% | 2% | 1% | 1% | ± 3.3 | 1,041 | Daily Kos |
| YouGov | Oct. 20-23 | 47% | 46% | -- | 4% | 2% | ± 3.4 | 1,102 | CBS |
| University of Georgia | Oct. 14-23 | 45% | 46% | 4% | 5% | -- | ± 4.0 | 1,145 | Atlanta Journal-Constitution |
| New York Times/Siena College | Oct. 13-19 | 43% | 43% | 4% | 8% | 1% | ± 4.1 | 759 | -- |
| Opinion Insight LLC | Oct. 12-15 | 44% | 44% | -- | 8% | 5% | ± 3.5 | 800 | American Action Forum |
| Quinnipiac | Oct. 8-12 | 45% | 51% | -- | 3% | -- | ± 3 | 1,040 | -- |
| Data for Progress | Oct. 8-11 | 43% | 44% | 3% | 10% | -- | ± 3.5 | 782 | Indivisible/Crooked Media |
| Public Policy Polling | Oct. 8-9 | 43% | 44% | 4% | 9% | -- | ± 4.3 | 528 | -- |
| Civiqs | September 26-29, 2020 | 46% | 48% | 3% | 2% | 1% | +/- 3.5 | 969 | Daily Kos |
| Quinnipiac | September 23-27, 2020 | 48% | 49% | -- | 2% | -- | +/- 2.9 | 1,125 | -- |
| Redfield & Wilton Strategies | September 23-26, 2020 | 42% | 47% | -- | 9% | 3% | +/- 3.5 | 789 | -- |
| YouGov | September 22-25, 2020 | 47% | 42% | -- | 8% | 3% | +/- 3.3 | 1,164 | CBS |
| Monmouth | September 17-21, 2020 | 48% | 42% | 4% | 6% | 1% | +/- 4.9 | 402 | -- |
| New York Times/Siena College | Sept. 17-21 | 41% | 38% | 5% | 16% | -- | ± 4.9 | 523 | -- |
| University of Georgia School of International and Public Affairs | September 11-20, 2020 | 47% | 45% | 4% | 5% | -- | +/- 4.3 | 1,150 | The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |
| Redfield & Wilton Strategies | September 12-16, 2020 | 43% | 43% | -- | 11% | 3% | +/- 3.5 | 763 | N/A |
| SurveyUSA | August 6-8, 2020 | 44% | 41% | -- | 10% | 4% | ± 5.3 | 623 | N/A |
| YouGov | July 28-31, 2020 | 45% | 43% | -- | 10% | 3% | ± 3.4 | 1,101 | CBS News |
| Monmouth University | July 23-27, 2020 | 49% | 43% | 1% | 7% | -- | ± 4.9 | 402 | N/A |
| SPRY Strategies | July 11-16, 2020 | 46% | 44% | -- | 6% | 4% | ± 3.7 | 700 | American Principles Project |
| Gravis Marketing | July 2, 2020 | 48% | 43% | -- | 9% | -- | ± 4.3 | 513 | One America News Network |
| Beacon Research, Shaw & Company Research, and Braun Research, Inc. | June 20-23, 2020 | 45% | 42% | -- | 8% | 3% | ± 3 | 1,013 | FOX News |
Campaign finance
The chart below contains data from financial reports submitted to the Federal Election Commission.
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Perdue | Republican Party | $102,722,246 | $90,354,529 | $12,414,002 | As of December 31, 2020 |
| Jon Ossoff | Democratic Party | $156,146,538 | $151,814,804 | $4,331,733 | As of December 31, 2020 |
|
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2020. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
|||||
Self-funding
- Ossoff loaned his campaign $450,000 on May 29.[2]
Race ratings
- See also: Race rating definitions and methods
Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:
- Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
- Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
- Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[3]
- Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.
Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[4][5][6]
Last updated: December 23, 2020
| Race ratings: Senate runoff election in Georgia | ||
|---|---|---|
| Race Tracker | Race rating | |
| The Cook Political Report | Toss-up | |
| Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales | Toss-up | |
| Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball | Toss-up | |
Endorsements
This section lists noteworthy endorsements issued in this election, including those made by high-profile individuals and organizations, cross-party endorsements, and endorsements made by newspaper editorial boards. It also includes a bulleted list of links to official lists of endorsements for any candidates who published that information on their campaign websites. Please note that this list is not exhaustive. If you are aware of endorsements that should be included, please click here.
Click the links below to see endorsement lists published on candidate campaign websites, if available.
| Noteworthy endorsements | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Endorsement | Perdue (R) | Ossoff (D) | ||||
| Elected officials | ||||||
| President Donald Trump (R)[7] | ✔ | |||||
| Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)[8] | ✔ | |||||
| Individuals | ||||||
| Former President Barack Obama (D) | ✔ | |||||
| 2020 Democratic presidential nominee/former Vice President Joe Biden[9] | ✔ | |||||
Biography
Jon Ossoff was born in Atlanta, Georgia. He obtained a bachelor's degree from Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service in 2009 and a master's degree from the London School of Economics in 2013.[10]
Career timeline
- 2013-Present: Managing director and CEO of Insights TWI, a filmmaking company that produces documentaries focused on international investigative journalism.[11]
- 2010-2012: Campaign staffer serving as deputy communications chief and campaign manager for Johnson.[12]
- 2010-2012: Senior legislative assistant to Johnson.[12]
- 2007-2010: Legislative correspondent to Rep. Hank Johnson (D).[12]
- 2005: Intern for Rep. John Lewis (D).[13]
Elections
2020
See also: United States Senate election in Georgia, 2020 (Perdue vs. Ossoff runoff)
United States Senate election in Georgia, 2020 (June 9 Democratic primary)
United States Senate election in Georgia, 2020 (June 9 Republican primary)
General runoff election
General runoff election for U.S. Senate Georgia
Jon Ossoff defeated incumbent David Perdue in the general runoff election for U.S. Senate Georgia on January 5, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Jon Ossoff (D)  | 50.6 | 2,269,923 |
 | David Perdue (R) | 49.4 | 2,214,979 | |
| Total votes: 4,484,902 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
General election
General election for U.S. Senate Georgia
Incumbent David Perdue and Jon Ossoff advanced to a runoff. They defeated Shane Hazel in the general election for U.S. Senate Georgia on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | David Perdue (R) | 49.7 | 2,462,617 |
| ✔ | | Jon Ossoff (D) | 47.9 | 2,374,519 |
 | Shane Hazel (L) | 2.3 | 115,039 | |
| Total votes: 4,952,175 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Darrell McGuire (Independent)
- Clifton Kilby (Independent)
- Elbert Bartell (Independent)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Georgia
The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Georgia on June 9, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Jon Ossoff | 52.8 | 626,819 |
 | Teresa Tomlinson | 15.8 | 187,416 | |
 | Sarah Riggs Amico | 11.8 | 139,574 | |
 | Maya Dillard Smith | 8.8 | 105,000 | |
 | James Knox | 4.2 | 49,452 | |
 | Marckeith DeJesus | 3.9 | 45,936 | |
| Tricia Carpenter McCracken | 2.7 | 32,463 | ||
| Total votes: 1,186,660 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Akhenaten Amun (D)
- Harold Shouse (D)
- Elaine Whigham Williams (D)
- Ted Terry (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. Senate Georgia
Incumbent David Perdue advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Georgia on June 9, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | David Perdue | 100.0 | 992,555 |
| Total votes: 992,555 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- James Jackson (R)
- Michael Jowers (R)
2017
| U.S. House, Georgia District 6 Special Election Runoff, 2017 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Karen Handel |
51.8% | 134,799 | |
| Democratic | Jon Ossoff | 48.2% | 125,517 | |
| Total Votes | 260,316 | |||
| Source: Georgia Secretary of State | ||||
Republican Karen Handel defeated Democrat Jon Ossoff in the June 20, 2017, special election runoff to represent the 6th Congressional District of Georgia.
It was the most expensive U.S. House race in history. The two campaigns, along with outside organizations, spent more than $50 million on the election.[14] Although Handel held the advantage with outside groups spending money on the race, the Democratic effort to flip this congressional seat, which has been held by a Republican since 1979, began early. Ossoff raised $8.3 million in the first quarter of 2017, where recent Democratic candidates raised no more than $45,000 in the general election. In April and May, Ossoff raised an additional $15 million.[15] Handel raised $4 million, relying on national political figures like President Donald Trump in May and Vice President Mike Pence in June to helm fundraisers.[16] Although Handel's fundraising paled in comparison to Ossoff's, she outraised recent Republican candidates by more than $2 million.
Tom Perez, the chair of the Democratic National Committee, said that his party's investment in the race was part of a larger effort to improve party infrastructure across the country. "We're investing heavily here in the Georgia six race, but I'm traveling across the country. We're building strong parties everywhere. That's what we have to do because that's where we fell short in the past. We allowed our basic infrastructure to, you know, to atrophy and we have to build strong parties," he said.[17] This spending was driven primarily by out-of-state contributions, which Handel and conservative outside organizations highlighted in critical campaign ads.
This special election was one of the first chances since 2016 for the Democratic Party to reduce the Republican House majority. When asked about the importance of the race, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich (R), who represented the district for two decades, told Ballotpedia, "I do think Republicans have to pay attention, and I think it would be a big mistake to allow this district to go to Ossoff, partly because of the psychology nationally, and partly because once a relatively talented person gets in office, it’s really hard to get rid of them."
The Democratic Party had not held Georgia's 6th District since before Gingrich's first election in 1978. However, Trump's victory margin of 1.5 percent over Hillary Clinton in the district in the 2016 presidential race signified that the district could be competitive. Comparatively, Mitt Romney (R) won the district by a margin of 23.3 percent in 2012, and John McCain (R) defeated Barack Obama (D) by 18 percent in 2008.[18][19] Republicans suggested that Ossoff's failure to win in the district, despite an infusion of cash, was evidence that Democrats would not have electoral success in 2018.
Ossoff was a first-time candidate who previously worked in D.C. as a legislative aide to Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) for five years and as a documentary producer. Ossoff campaigned against Trump's policies and emphasized small business growth, affordable healthcare, preserving Medicare and Medicaid, and national security. He was characterized as more of a centrist than a progressive by New York Magazine, The Washington Post, National Review, and The New York Times.[20] Handel, who served as the Georgia Secretary of State from 2007 to 2010, supported the Trump administration's position on healthcare and the withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement, although she rarely mentioned the president by name while campaigning.[21] She instead focused on promoting conservative principles and economic issues such as improving the tax code for small businesses.
This was the fourth congressional special election of the year and the third won by a Republican.
| U.S. House, Georgia District 6 Special Election, 2017 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Jon Ossoff |
48.1% | 92,673 | |
| Republican | Karen Handel |
19.8% | 38,071 | |
| Republican | Bob Gray | 10.8% | 20,802 | |
| Republican | Dan Moody | 8.8% | 17,028 | |
| Republican | Judson Hill | 8.8% | 16,870 | |
| Republican | Kurt Wilson | 0.9% | 1,820 | |
| Republican | David Abroms | 0.9% | 1,639 | |
| Democratic | Ragin Edwards | 0.3% | 504 | |
| Democratic | Ron Slotin | 0.3% | 491 | |
| Republican | Bruce LeVell | 0.2% | 455 | |
| Republican | Mohammad Ali Bhuiyan | 0.2% | 415 | |
| Republican | Keith Grawert | 0.2% | 415 | |
| Republican | Amy Kremer | 0.2% | 351 | |
| Republican | William Llop | 0.2% | 326 | |
| Democratic | Rebecca Quigg | 0.2% | 304 | |
| Democratic | Richard Keatley | 0.1% | 229 | |
| Independent | Alexander Hernandez | 0.1% | 121 | |
| Independent | Andre Pollard | 0% | 55 | |
| Total Votes | 192,569 | |||
| Source: Georgia Secretary of State | ||||
Campaign themes
2020
Jon Ossoff completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Ossoff's responses.
| Collapse all
- Too many Georgians can't afford health care. The high cost is driven by the corrupt influence of the insurance and drug industries in Washington - a devastating product of our broken campaign finance system. In the U.S. Senate, I'll work to make quality health care a simple, affordable, and reassuring reality for all of us by supporting Medicaid expansion, a crackdown on price gouging, expansion of the U.S. Public Health Service, and federal investment in health clinics. I'll vote to add a nonprofit public option to the ACA exchange while defending every citizen's right to private insurance.
- Lobbying and political contributions should not buy bailout money, unfair subsidies, or impunity for labor and environmental abuses. But as long as money buys political influence, our government's policies will favor the most powerful special interests. The health insurance, pharmaceutical, and fossil fuel industries have bought the allegiance of my opponent, Sen. David Perdue, and he in turn has voted in their interests rather than Georgia's interests. I run a business that investigates bribery and the abuse of power worldwide. I'm not taking contributions from corporate PACs, and my first act in the Senate will be to back a Constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United.
- The government's financial safety net for Wall Street is vast & instantaneous, while help for ordinary people & smaller firms has been meager & slow. Rather than relying on subsidies for investment banks as economic stimulus & hoping benefits trickle down, I'll support policies that help Georgia's families make & save more money: fast & direct emergency relief during economic crises, lower taxes for all but the wealthiest, debt-free public college, free vocational training, & health care guaranteed at an affordable price. And to create millions of jobs, revitalize our economy, and alleviate poverty, I'll support a historic infrastructure program to lay the foundation for decades of prosperity, sustainability, and health.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign website
Ossoff's campaign website stated the following:
| “ |
The Economy The COVID-19 outbreak is causing enormous economic hardship. Tens of millions are losing jobs. Businesses are shuttered. Banks and landlords are threatening foreclosure and eviction. Essential workers are underpaid, underprotected, and underinsured. This crisis is laying bare structural inequity and corruption in U.S. economic policy. Similar to the 2007-2008 financial crisis, while hardship is concentrated among working- and middle-class families and smaller businesses, the fastest and biggest emergency relief has gone straight to the top. The government’s financial safety net for Wall Street is vast and instantaneous, while help for ordinary people and smaller firms has been meager and slow. Rather than relying on subsidies for Wall Street as economic stimulus and hoping the benefits trickle down, I’ll support policies that help Georgia’s families make and save more money: fast and generous direct emergency relief during economic crises, lower taxes for all but the wealthiest Americans, debt-free public college, free vocational training, and health care guaranteed at an affordable price. To create millions of jobs, revitalize our economy, and alleviate poverty, I’ll support the most ambitious infrastructure program in history. Upgraded infrastructure will serve as the foundation for decades of prosperity, sustainability, and health. Georgia is a growing economic powerhouse in agriculture, logistics, aerospace, technology, clean energy, and media. Georgia’s businesses and entrepreneurs are the crucial engine of job and wealth creation in our state. I’ll work to make tax and regulatory compliance simpler and more efficient for our businesses. I’ll expose and attack unfair and unethical trade, labor, and environmental practices by overseas competitors that disadvantage American workers and businesses. I’ll work to reduce our dependence on Chinese supply chains and strengthen domestic producers. I’ll support strong antitrust enforcement and I’ll attack anti-competitive special interest subsidies secured by dominant firms with lobbying power at the expense of smaller competitors and startups. These policies will support long-term prosperity, competitiveness, and strength. The health of the banking system is vital, but public funds and loans shouldn’t subsidize speculative short-term trading on Wall Street. That’s why I’ll vote to reinstate the Glass-Steagall Act, so Federal economic policy serves the long-term prosperity, stability, and financial security of families and productive enterprises, not short-term gains for investment banks, hedge funds, and private equity firms. Lobbying and political contributions should not buy bailout money, unfair subsidies, or impunity for labor and environmental abuses. But as long as money buys political influence, our government’s policies will favor the most powerful special interests, distorting the market to benefit the best connected people and businesses. That’s one of many reasons campaign finance reform is essential to our prosperity and competitiveness. I’ve dedicated my career to fighting corruption. I run a business that investigates bribery and the abuse of power worldwide. I’m not taking contributions from corporate PACs or Congressional lobbyists. As Georgia’s Senator, I will be accountable exclusively to the people of our state. Health Care This pandemic should be a massive wake-up call for those who doubt the necessity of ensuring all Americans have health insurance. The link between health and wealth must be broken. It is essential that every single American has great health care. And Georgia already faced a shocking health crisis, with among the highest rates of uninsurance and maternal mortality in the country. In the U.S. Senate, I’ll work to make great health insurance a simple, affordable, reassuring reality for all of us. Other countries have achieved this. So can we. Health insurance is too expensive and complex, and protections for women, young people, and pre-existing conditions are under attack. Few plans are available, premiums are high, surprise billing is frequent, and dealing with insurance companies can be a nightmare. Even today, in the midst of a massive health crisis, the GOP, led by David Perdue, is still working to rip health insurance from tens of millions of Americans. The GOP and David Perdue have also long planned to cut Medicare, putting health care for seniors at risk. I’ll vote to protect and strengthen Medicare, and I support offering all Americans a public health insurance option as an affordable alternative to private insurance. The public plan’s premiums will be affordable for all and there will be no deductibles for necessary care. Its coverage will be comprehensive — including preventative care, prescription drugs, dental, vision, hearing, mental health, and neonatal and postnatal care. Medicaid expansion and auto-enrollment of the uninsured will ensure all Americans are covered regardless of wealth. Your insurance will be your choice. Americans will be free to maintain exclusively private health insurance or to purchase supplemental private insurance on top of the public plan if they so choose. For those with private insurance, I’ll vote to strengthen the Affordable Care Act’s protections for Americans with pre-existing conditions, women, and young people. Those protections remain under attack by the health insurance industry and their allies in the GOP. I’ll vote to crack down on price gouging by drug companies and make more generic medicine available. I’ll work relentlessly to deliver federal funds to build more health clinics and hire more health care workers across Georgia, especially in rural and underserved communities, and to solve Georgia’s shocking and shameful maternal health crisis. Under my plan, the public option will include higher reimbursement rates for rural hospitals because they are vital assets in our communities. And I’ll introduce legislation to expand the U.S. Public Health Service so it can recruit, train, and deploy more medical teams to clinics across Georgia and the nation. Click here to read my full plan to ensure affordable, accessible health care for every Georgian. Infrastructure I’ll push for an unprecedented American infrastructure program that includes big, overdue investments in transportation and transit, clean energy, energy efficiency, public health, communications, research and development, emergency response, and environmental cleanup. These investments will create job training and employment opportunities for millions of American workers and demand for products made by American businesses. They will revitalize our economy and lay the foundations for decades of prosperity, environmental sustainability, and health. Infrastructure is often taken for granted. It includes energy production and the grid, transit, roads, bridges, tunnels, rail, aviation, ports and waterways, communications, cybersecurity, water treatment and distribution, housing, and public health. Upgraded infrastructure will make life safer and more convenient, support commerce, attract investment, protect our environment, and improve our health. Strong, advanced infrastructure is also essential for resilient and effective emergency response – whether pandemic, natural disaster, national security, or the totally unexpected. Money spent on infrastructure is truly an investment in America, with positive returns across the entire economy and dramatic improvements to our quality of life. The Environment The health of the environment is vital to our own health, prosperity, and security. In the Senate, I’ll make energy and environmental policy on the basis of scientific evidence — not lobbying by polluters. We face an urgent environmental crisis as out-of-control pollution is fast changing the climate, destroying ecosystems, killing off species, and damaging human health. The scientific consensus is unambiguous: if pollution from fossil fuel combustion is not controlled, the consequences will be dire. We can meet our energy needs without destroying the environment — but only by rapidly transitioning to clean energy sources, dramatically reducing carbon emissions, and increasing energy efficiency. That’s why I’ll support a historic infrastructure plan that includes massive investments in clean energy, energy efficiency, and environmental protection. I’ll push for America to immediately re-enter the Paris Climate Accords — and then to lead negotiation of an even more ambitious climate treaty. I’ll work to reverse the Trump Administration’s rollbacks of clean air, clean water, and fuel economy standards — and then to strengthen them. I’ll push for fast advances in sustainability — including a rapidly phased-in ban on single-use plastics, strongly enforced treaties to protect oceans and fisheries, aggressive protection of endangered species and habitats, increased fines for spills and contamination, and stricter controls on toxic chemicals. Criminal Justice Reform Our criminal justice system should render justice and protect the public while upholding due process, civil rights and civil liberties, and equal protection under the law. Yet in the United States today, deep race and class disparities persist in policing, prosecution, and sentencing. Racial profiling, arbitrary detention, brutality, and abuse in detention and incarceration are widespread. We incarcerate tens of thousands guilty of non-violent, victimless crimes, destroying lives and incurring massive costs. The deck is stacked against defendants who lack money, while those with wealth and connections often secure special treatment or outright impunity. Our approach to punishment must respect the human dignity of incarcerated people and recognize that except for the most dangerous violent criminals, successful re-entry to society after incarceration is crucial for both the convicted and the public. Nevertheless, brutal and inhumane conditions prevail in our prisons and jails. Mandatory minimum sentencing, the drug war, and the misguided use of criminal enforcement as a response to addiction, mental illness, and poverty have contributed to mass incarceration that is a blight on our country. In the Senate, I will champion and fight tirelessly to pass a New Civil Rights Act that strengthens civil rights laws and advances comprehensive criminal justice reform. Race and class disparities in policing, prosecution, and sentencing must be ended nationwide. I will work to reverse the militarization of local police forces, enhance due process and human rights protections for all citizens, ban private prisons, end cash bail, reform prisons and raise conditions of incarceration to humane standards, abolish the death penalty, legalize cannabis, and end incarceration for nonviolent drug offenses. I’ll also support more federal law enforcement resources to attack organized crime, human trafficking, racketeering, money laundering, fraud, espionage, and corruption. Roe v. Wade I am pro-choice. I believe that women, not the government, should control the private, personal, and complex decision whether to terminate a pregnancy. I run a business that investigates organized crime and corruption for news organizations worldwide. Our teams have gone undercover to expose how dangerous, unqualified, and unregulated abortion providers kill thousands of women in places where safe abortion services are not available legally. In the Senate, I will only vote to confirm federal judges who pledge to uphold Roe v. Wade. COVID-19 To contain this outbreak and prevent an economic depression, the Trump Administration’s gross incompetence must end. It didn’t have to be this way. The White House ignored the warnings and dismissed the threat. But accountability will have to wait for November. The immediate solutions are clear, but they must be implemented with the speed, competence, and focus demanded by a great challenge such as this. Congress and the Administration should focus on boosting the health response, shoring up Americans’ finances, and speeding up containment and adaptation so Americans can return to work and normal life as soon as possible. In the meantime, we must intensify short-term efforts to crack down on the spread. First, every effort must be made to boost hospitals and the health response. The key immediate vulnerabilities are inadequate ICU capacity, insufficient testing capacity, a shortage of medical equipment for respiratory critical care, and lack of protective gear for doctors and nurses. The lack of protective equipment is personal for me — my wife Alisha is a doctor here at an Atlanta hospital — but we’re all at risk when medical teams fall sick. The federal government should spend whatever it takes and cut through all the red tape to fill these gaps. (This effort should have begun in January.) Use the Army Corps of Engineers, military logistical and medical units, and the Defense Production Act as necessary to build hospital capacity and properly equip medical teams. Give governors whatever they need. Be transparent about how many additional beds, respiratory critical care units, and isolation wards will be built, where, and by when. Go fast! Second, shore up Americans’ finances. Millions are losing jobs. Families are staring over a financial cliff. This isn’t the time for partisan bickering and gridlock. Congress must immediately send generous emergency cash to tide over people and businesses. The fastest and most generous help should go to those who need it the most. And no secret slush funds or special favors for powerful corporations. We need complete transparency and rigorous accountability. The president’s dismissal of the Inspector General for the $2 trillion relief program just days after it was enacted is outrageous. A repeat of the bank bailout debacle would destroy what little public trust in government remains. Third, speed up containment and adaptation so we can find a “new normal” quickly and get back to work. Study countries that are seeing success. Equip medical experts to track the virus, defending privacy and civil liberties along the way. We have to know where the virus is and isn’t. That means widespread testing and free COVID-19 treatment (so no one is afraid to get tested). Isolate the virus. Establish clear policies for the self-quarantine of infected Americans until they are healthy. Tighten and enforce regulations to protect seniors from exposure. Reinforce strong hygiene. Implement widespread temperature checks. Mandate the routine disinfection of public spaces and surfaces. Finally, intensify short-term efforts to crack down on the spread. Our highest hopes are that these efforts are swiftly effective and the virus is less lethal than suspected. But severe illness is still spreading exponentially, and many hospitals are warning they’ll soon be overwhelmed. Governors and mayors should listen to them and slow down the virus by implementing strong distancing policies now, not later, including shelter-in-place orders where necessary. This buys time to build health care capacity and to develop therapies and vaccines. Social distancing at such scale cannot continue indefinitely. That is precisely why we must boost the health response and speed up containment and adaptation — so we can return to our lives without overloading hospitals and causing unnecessary deaths. We can do these things and defeat the virus together. This won’t last forever. But at minimum, the next few months are going to be hard. It is vital that the federal response become more effective and coherent. In 2014, my company investigated the Ebola outbreak in Liberia, where government mistakes cost lives. We can’t afford any more mistakes here. I truly don’t know if our elected officials in Washington realize how selfish and incompetent they look. The President has been negligent and erratic. Senators were briefed and adjusted their stock portfolios instead of preparing the public. They all have to get real now, and I pray for all our sakes they are successful. We’re still America. We have huge resources and brilliant people. Consider what we’ve achieved together when we‘ve brought to bear all that we must: the miraculous industrial mobilization of World War II, the New Deal, the Apollo program. We’re still Americans. This is what we do. Let’s get to work! Education We all want and we all deserve the basics in life: a steady job that pays a living wage and helps us save for retirement, good health care, a nice home, and a great education for ourselves and for our kids. But in America today, equality of opportunity isn’t a reality — and in so many ways that inequality starts in our educational system. To improve the quality of primary and secondary education, I support increasing teacher pay and breaking the link between a community’s wealth and the funding available for its public schools. When discussing higher education, the national political debate tends to focus on four-year college degrees. We need greater emphasis on vocational training. For someone currently making $10 an hour without benefits, a commercial driver’s license or a welding certificate can be life-changing. That’s why in the Senate I’ll work to make trade school and vocational training free for every American. And I’ll work to make four-year degrees at our public colleges 100% debt-free. So many Americans today are held back by student debt — can’t start a business, start a family, or buy a home — because they can’t keep up with student loan payments. But the cost of education shouldn’t hold us back. Education should expand our opportunities. I support a generous forgiveness program for those struggling to pay off their student loans, caps on interest rates to relieve financial stress for all borrowers, and a program that links Federal student loan payments to income so paying off student loans is never a financial hardship. Gun Safety Reforms A clear majority of Georgians support reforms to reduce injuries and deaths from gun violence while protecting the Second Amendment right to bear arms. I support the Second Amendment and I respect the overwhelming majority of gun owners who recognize that guns aren’t toys; they are lethal and dangerous tools. Firearms possession comes with great responsibilities for safe ownership, storage, and use. The shocking level of gun violence in America today makes plain the need for gun safety reforms, which will not preclude any responsible and qualified American from owning firearms for home defense, hunting, marksmanship, collection, or recreation. I support universal criminal history checks for gun purchases, red flag laws to protect family members and domestic partners concerned about the mental health of their loved ones, and closing the gun show loophole. I support a ban on the sale of semi-automatic rifles (“assault weapons”) and high-capacity magazines to the general public. Americans who would purchase high-powered weapons derived from modern military technology should be required to demonstrate high qualification and compelling specific needs. Most gun owners are responsible, qualified, and own weapons in good faith. However, the only objective of the firearms industry lobbyists is to drive up gun sales and enrich shareholders — even at the expense of public safety and common sense. I’m not taking a dime from the gun lobby, and I’ll fight to end their corrupt influence in Washington. Immigration My mother is an immigrant. She came to this country when she was 23 because she believed in the American Dream, and she’s lived it. She became a successful entrepreneur, a U.S. citizen, and an active participant in our democracy. Our country, like any country, must know and control who crosses our borders, and strong border security doesn’t require us to sacrifice our moral principles, our commitment to human rights, or our American identity as a haven for people fleeing persecution and striving for opportunity. Ripping children from their parents and disappearing them into federal custody is an atrocity. I’ll support an immigration policy that strengthens our borders, puts American workers first, respects human rights, and creates a path to legal status for undocumented immigrants who are already here and otherwise follow the law, especially those brought here as children. We must reform the horrifically dysfunctional Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement so that these agencies carry out their duties with competence and humanity. And instead of making life hell for migrants, immigration enforcement should crack down on the employers of undocumented immigrants, like The Trump Organization. LGBTQ Equality In the Senate, I’ll fight for equal rights and equal protection under the law for all Americans, regardless of gender or sexual orientation. I will defend marriage equality and the right of gay couples to adopt children. I will support the Equality Act and vote to expand Federal anti-discrimination statutes to prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender or sexual orientation. I will oppose efforts to re-impose the ban on military service by openly gay Americans. Any American’s desire to serve and defend their country should be honored without discrimination. I’ll support strengthening anti-bullying programs for LGBTQ youth, and I will defend and support the safety and human rights of transgender Americans. The LGBTQ community will be able to count on me to stand with them as a strong and outspoken ally. Strengthening HBCU's In the Senate I will champion HBCUs to strengthen these gems of America’s higher education system. Georgia is home to ten HBCUs and the Atlanta University Center (“AUC”) Consortium, making Georgia a national HBCU headquarters. Georgia’s HBCUs are: Albany State University, Fort Valley State University, Savannah State University, Clark Atlanta University, Interdenominational Theological Center, Morehouse College and Morehouse School of Medicine, Morris Brown College, Paine College, and Spelman College. HBCUs are vital ladders to opportunity for Black Americans — and these institutions train leaders, entrepreneurs, scientists, doctors, theologians, and academics who make vital contributions to American society. HBCUs face devastating hardship as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. These vital institutions need immediate support to avoid long-lasting damage. At the strategic level, HBCUs need and deserve deepened long-term public investment. Following a series of meetings with HBCU administrators, faculty, and alumni leaders this summer, it is clear these long-term policy priorities must include:
To develop this plan I convened a series of meetings with Presidents, Vice Presidents, staff, and alumni leaders from Albany State University, Fort Valley State University, Interdenominational Theological Center, Morris Brown College, Clark Atlanta University, Spelman College and the Atlanta University Center Consortium to listen and understand the immediate and long-term needs of these institutions. This paper will serve as a framework for my legislative approach to supporting Georgia’s HBCUs and HBCUs nationwide when I represent Georgia in the United States Senate. Click here to read my full plan to strengthen Georgia’s HBCUs.[22] |
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| —Jon Ossoff's campaign website (2020)[23] | ||
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2017
The following issues were listed on Ossoff's campaign website. For a full list of campaign themes, click here.
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| —Jon Ossoff's campaign website | ||
See also
2020 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ The New York Times, "Who Financed the Georgia Sixth, the Most Expensive House Election Ever," June 20, 2017
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Ossoff, T. Jonathan," accessed December 28, 2020
- ↑ Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
- ↑ Twitter, "Donald J. Trump on June 11, 2020," accessed June 11, 2020
- ↑ Twitter, "Bernie Sanders on November 28, 2020," accessed December 1, 2020
- ↑ Cherokee Tribune & Ledger News, "Biden gives endorsements in Georgia's U.S. Senate races," October 26, 2020
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on September 14, 2020
- ↑ About Insight TWI, "Insight TWI produces world-class documentary films and television programmes, specializing in fresh, daring factual content and high-impact journalism.," accessed March 29, 2017
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 The New Yorker, "CAN THIS DEMOCRAT WIN THE GEORGIA SIXTH?" accessed March 29, 2017
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedElectJon - ↑ Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "Spending in Georgia Sixth race pushes past $50 million," June 19, 2017
- ↑ Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "Ossoff raises another $15M in Georgia 6th, setting new fundraising record," June 8, 2017
- ↑ The New York Times, "Ossoff Raises $23 Million in Most Expensive House Race in History," June 9, 2017
- ↑ CNN, "Democrat Narrowly Loses in Georgia; Interview with DNC Chair Tom Perez; Republican Wake-Up Call in Georgia; Hernandez Commits Suicide in Prison; Boxer Finds New Fight; Georgia Special Election," April 19, 2017
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections presents the 2016 presidential election results by congressional district," January 30, 2017
- ↑ Vox, "Georgia Dems normally raise $10,000 for this House seat. This April they’ll have $3 million." March 27, 2017
- ↑ New Republic, "The Enduring Mystery of Jon Ossoff," June 12, 2017
- ↑ Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "Enthusiastic or wary, Georgia Republicans come to terms with Trump," June 3, 2017
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Jon Ossoff 2020 campaign website, "Policy," accessed November 19, 2020
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