Jon Ossoff (D), who appeared to be headed towards a runoff most of the day Wednesday, now seems to have clinched an outright win in Georgia’s Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, the AP reports.

Atlanta Journal Constitution: “Jon Ossoff built a commanding lead in the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate on Tuesday as polls began to close after a day of voting marred by long lines and faulty equipment, but it was not yet clear whether he would face a runoff.”

Vice President Mike Pence’s visit to Georgia required some “logistics somersaults” to accommodate the tensions between Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R) and Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA), the Atlanta Journal Constitution reports.

Loeffler flew with Pence to Georgia and “was invited to board the plane by top Trump aide Mark Meadows, who counts several of his former staffers in Loeffler’s office. That led Pence’s aides to ask Collins to join the greeting party—and ride with Pence back to Dobbins on the return trip. … Both got roughly 30 minutes of face time with the Veep.”

President Trump’s advisers are increasingly concerned about Sen. Kelly Loeffler’s (R-GA) campaign in Georgia, a newly competitive state where the president’s own poll numbers have tightened against Joe Biden, the New York Times reports.

“Because the field is so crowded, Georgia officials expect no candidate to get a majority, forcing a runoff. And the president’s team is planning to stay out of the race until the runoff approaches, which wouldn’t be until January 2021.”

Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) will reserve about $4 million worth of airtime for a trio of new ads pushing back on criticism about her stock transactions during the coronavirus pandemic, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reports.

The ads label the scrutiny from opponents, including Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA), as “liberal lies” and claim she’s “unfairly targeted all because she’s a strong conservative woman.”

“Sen. David Perdue, a Georgia Republican up for reelection and a close Trump confidant, issued a blunt warning to GOP activists during an off-the-record conference call this week: Democrats are in position to turn his state blue and take the Senate,” CNN reports

Said Perdue: “Here’s the reality: The state of Georgia is in play.”

“The stark warning from a GOP senator — who is not considered among the most vulnerable Republicans this election cycle — illustrates the fear among Republicans that Democrats’ chances of taking back the Senate continue to grow.”

Rep. Doug Collins’ (R-GA) Senate campaign in Georgia has prompted a raging intraparty fight leading to the departure of some of his top political advisers and recriminations with the Senate GOP’s main campaign arm, CNN reports.

“The National Republican Senatorial Committee is accusing Collins of running against Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA), a Republican incumbent appointed by the governor, out of his own ‘selfish’ interests — while raising alarms that the bid has jeopardized the party’s chances to hold onto two GOP seats and made it harder for President Donald Trump to carry the Peach State in the fall.”

The move hasn’t dissuaded Collins from running. His spokesman told Playbook the “result is a positive one. Instead of a bunch of suits like the cast of ‘Law & Order’” working for the campaign, Collins has amassed a “colorful cast of characters who all have an aversion to authority.”

Rep. Doug Collins (R) has launched an attack ad against Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R) in the Georgia Senate race by going after her past financial support for Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT).

President Trump suggested that he’s working on a compromise between Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) and Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA), two Georgia Republicans who are clashing over the same seat in a November election, the Atlantic Journal Constitution reports.

Said Trump: “I know, Kelly, that you’re going to end up liking him a lot.. Something’s going to happen that’s going to be very good. I don’t know; I haven’t figured it out yet.”

Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA) launched a bid for U.S. Senate on Fox News, saying he’d center his campaign on support for President Trump as he dismissed concerns about opening a bitter Republican rift in Georgia, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reports.

Said Collins: “I’ve still got a lot of work left to do to help this president. We’re getting ready for a good time down here to keep defending this president and working for the people of Georgia.”

“The decision by the four-term congressman sets up a battle with Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA), a wealthy Republican executive tapped by Gov. Brian Kemp (R) in December.”

“Soon-to-be Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler plans to spend $20 million of her own money on her 2020 Senate campaign in Georgia — a massive sum that could give potential rivals pause about trying to unseat her,” Politico reports.

“President Trump quietly met Sunday in the White House with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and the governor’s preferred pick to fill the state’s Senate seat, Atlanta businesswoman Kelly Loeffler,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“But the private huddle turned tense and ended quickly… Mr. Trump has preferred Rep. Doug Collins, a Republican who has vocally defended the president during the impeachment process, and he told Mr. Kemp that he would be taking a risk by appointing the politically untested Ms. Loeffler. At one point Mr. Trump questioned why they were holding the meeting if Mr. Kemp had made his decision.”

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp is resisting pressure from President Trump on who to appoint to an interim U.S. Senate post, the Wall Street Journal reports.

“In recent days, the president has spoken to Mr. Kemp at least twice—once face-to-face in Atlanta and once on the phone—urging him to pick Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA), a vocal supporter of the president in Congress… Mr. Collins, a white conservative from north Georgia, has pushed for months to get the seat that Sen. Johnny Isakson, 74 years old, is leaving at the end of the year because of health problems.”

“But the governor is leaning toward appointing a female or minority candidate to improve the GOP’s chances in Atlanta’s burgeoning suburbs, key battlegrounds in the 2020 elections.”

“Matt Lieberman, an entrepreneur who is the son of former Sen. Joseph Lieberman, became the first Democrat to enter the race for retiring Republican Johnny Isakson’s seat on Thursday with a promise to be a voice for frustrated Georgians,” the Atlanta Journal Constitution reports.