ATLANTA — Former University of Georgia football star Herschel Walker launched a campaign Tuesday for the U.S. Senate, bringing both his celebrity and his untested political background to one of the premier national contests on the 2022 ballot.
Walker becomes the most prominent Republican to line up against Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock in next year’s contest, ending intense speculation that he’ll move from his home in Texas to Georgia to run for the office.
Walker didn’t immediately comment, though he filed paperwork Tuesday with the Federal Election Commission establishing his candidacy and recently registered to vote in Georgia. A formal announcement is expected within days.
He entered the race at the urging of former President Donald Trump, who said the one-time running back would be as “unstoppable” as a candidate as he was on the field.
Trump’s seal of approval, combined with Warnock’s lofty name recognition and outsider persona, make Walker the instant Republican front-runner — and sets up a potential November 2022 matchup between two Black candidates in one of the nation’s most important political battlegrounds.
But many senior Republicans worry that Walker will inevitably stumble against Warnock, who has emerged as a fundraising powerhouse and national figure since defeating GOP incumbent Kelly Loeffler to become the first Black U.S. senator in Georgia history.
Along with his long-standing Texas residency, Walker has a history of violent and erratic behavior, some of which he’s attributed to his struggles with mental illness. His stance on major policies, along with his ability to court grassroots voters and donors, is a mystery. He’s skipped key political events that most prospective contenders in Georgia attend.
Still, his flirtation with a run froze out other prominent Republicans, including U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, who repeatedly said he wouldn’t run until Walker ruled himself out. Trump’s support for Walker, Carter said, meant he’s essentially a lock to win the primary.
But three other contenders entered the race months ago, and they could immediately test Walker’s popularity with Republican voters — and the former president’s clout in Georgia.
Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black is the best known of the trio. The three-term incumbent has picked up key endorsements and painted Walker as a carpetbagger who should have long ago moved to the state to “learn what Georgians have on their minds.”
The other two contenders are Kelvin King, a military veteran who was one of Trump’s top Black surrogates; and Latham Saddler, a former Navy SEAL and Trump administration official who has surprised Republicans with his early fundraising success and organizational apparatus.
Whoever emerges will face a battle-hardened opponent in Warnock, who along with Jon Ossoff scored stunning victories in January to flip control of the U.S. Senate. Warnock, the pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church, won’t have to worry about a divisive primary, and he’s already stocked his campaign war chest with more than $10.5 million.
The Democrat has said little, however, about a potential matchup against Walker. He’s instead emphasized his support for the bipartisan infrastructure plan that narrowly passed the U.S. Senate and other measures, including pending legislation aimed at bolstering voting rights and expanding social services.
“If you hear me talking for a while, you hear me bring up my dad. I had an older father, he was born in 1917,” Warnock said of Walker’s potential candidacy at an Atlanta Press Club event last week. “He told me if somebody hires you to do a job, do the job they hired you to do. So right now I’m focused on doing the job.”
Walker’s decision caps months of buzz about whether he would seek the office.
Sharp-elbowed politicians wouldn’t normally wait patiently on an out-of-state political newcomer to make up his mind. But Trump’s enduring popularity with Georgia Republicans, along with Walker’s celebrity appeal, forced other contenders to the sidelines.
As Walker waited it out, a torrent of media reports raised concerns about his candidacy, bringing to light questionable business practices, a checkered voting history and details of a tumultuous divorce that could shadow his Senate bid.
Walker has disclosed some of his violent tendencies and struggles with mental illness on his own, in a book published in 2008 that recounts playing Russian roulette and pointing a gun at his own head while sitting at his kitchen table in 1991.
The book, “Breaking Free,” also explores his diagnosis of dissociative identity disorder, once known as multiple personality disorder, a condition he said he developed to combat the bullying he faced as an overweight child with a speech disorder.
Since then, however, reports have documented the violent threats he leveled in 2005 against his ex-wife, Cindy Grossman, which led to a judge granting her a protective order. She has said she felt “there was somebody there that was evil” when he threatened her.
More recently, Walker’s current wife has come under scrutiny for potentially casting an illegal ballot in Georgia’s November presidential election. Julie Blanchard lives in Texas, though she owns a house in Georgia. It’s illegal for nonresidents to vote in Georgia in most circumstances, and state elections officials have opened an investigation.
The questionable vote brought added attention because Walker has called for the prosecution of voter fraud and promoted false claims of voting irregularities leveled by Trump, who tried and failed to overturn his election defeat in Georgia.
Blanchard initially told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution she and her husband are “residents in both places.” She later said she considers herself a resident of Georgia, where she has a driver’s license and does business.
The 59-year-old Walker faces other significant hurdles that have little to do with his past.
The first-time candidate must win over activists, woo donors and hone policies under a harsh spotlight in one of the nation’s most closely watched contests, a top target for Republicans seeking to take back control of the Senate.
He must also navigate a thorny reception from the GOP establishment. A number of high-profile Republicans in Georgia and Washington have been critical of Walker, and some have urged him not to run.
Black has quickly picked up endorsements from former Gov. Nathan Deal and dozens of county sheriffs. In a social media post Tuesday, Black clutched a football as he welcomed Walker “back to Georgia” and invited him to upcoming GOP events.
And Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell has privately encouraged Loeffler and former U.S. Sen. David Perdue to consider comeback attempts. While Perdue has ruled out another run, Loeffler has yet to decide.
Not surprisingly, Democrats cheered on the “nightmare scenario” of a chaotic Republican primary.
“By the end of this long, divisive, and expensive intra-party fight, it’ll be clear that none of these candidates are focused on the issues that matter most to Georgians,” said Dan Gottlieb of the state Democratic Party.
In his limited public remarks, Walker has brushed aside the negative media attention and the grumblings from fellow Republicans.
He’s aligned himself closely with the former president, whose relationship with Walker dates to the 1980s when he played for a USFL team that Trump owned. In an appearance at the Republican National Convention last year, he praised Trump as a visionary.
“Some people don’t like his style, the way he knocks down obstacles that get in the way of his goals,” Walker said. “People on the opposing team, they don’t like when I ran over them either. But that’s how you get the job done.”
Walker’s campaign seems likely to mirror that tough-guy approach while also emphasizing his personal story.
He grew up in the east Georgia hamlet of Wrightsville, starred over three seasons at the University of Georgia and went on to a professional football career that ended in 1997.
Later, he embarked on a brief career as a mixed-martial arts fighter and built a food business that has a national footprint.
His supporters say he’ll draw extra attention as one of a few Black Republicans running statewide campaigns in next year’s midterm. And they say he’ll benefit from his fame: A recent survey by the left-leaning Public Policy Polling showed he’s neck-and-neck with Warnock.
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