Key Republican wants Ga. as early primary state — in 2028

Brad Raffensperger, the secretary of state of Georgia, would like to see his state host an early presidential primary, but he does not want it to be in 2024 as President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party have advocated.

To The Associated Press, the Republican election official who gained notoriety for blocking then-President Trump’s efforts to reverse his 2020 defeat in Georgia said he would support an early primary in 2028.

Even though the Democratic National Committee and the White House want Georgia to be an early nominating state, this is the first time that Raffensperger, who determines Georgia’s primary election dates, has given his approval.

Raffensperger told the Associated Press that Georgia would be a fantastic early primary state in 2028.

“It has a solid cross-section of active voters from both parties, and, as everyone seems to now realize, we run fantastic elections,” the secretary continued, taking a jab at Democrats’ claims that he and Republican Gov. Brian Kemp have pushed to limit ballot access.

Raffensperger’s stance emphasizes the difficulty the Democrats will have in rearranging their nomination schedule to prioritize states with more ethnically diverse electorates and lessen the weight given to Iowa and New Hampshire. Both major parties’ nomination processes have been kicked off in those predominantly white states for decades, and they continue to do so on the current Republican timetable for 2024, with national GOP officials showing no inclination to reschedule.