Former Georgia state congressman Vernon Jones does not think Herschel Walker's campaign team, nor the Republican Party, served their candidate well in the run-up to Tuesday's Georgia Senate runoff — pitting the Republican challenger Walker against incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga.
"The Republican Party could have gone directly at Warnock," but ultimately steered clear of that strategic path, Jones told Newsmax's "The Chris Salcedo Show" with guest host John Tabacco on Tuesday.
For starters, Jones was chagrined Walker — the 1982 Heisman Trophy winner in college football (University of Georgia), a former NFL star, a one-time Olympian (bobsled), and arguably the greatest homegrown athlete in Georgia's illustrious history — could muster just 8% of the Black vote in last month's midterm elections.
It is particularly noteworthy when incumbent Gov. Brian Kemp, a Walker ally, garnered 20% of the Black vote in the same election cycle.
Next up, Jones was critical of how Walker's campaign team neglected to target many of Georgia's African-American communities.
Third, Jones could not believe the Walker team ignored the philosophical divide which separates Walker from Warnock — given how Warnock paints himself as a moderate in media ads, but also supports biological males identifying as females participating in girls' sports at the levels of middle school, high school, and college.
"That message didn't get out to anybody" in the Black community, lamented Jones, adding Warnock is too "extreme" for a largely conservative state like Georgia.
During their Newsmax interview, both Jones and former Rep. Doug Collins, R-Ga., agreed Republican leaders need to improve with early voting and ballot-collection tactics in future elections. The simple blueprint to follow: Mimic the Democrats' knack for getting things done — early.
"Republicans [on Tuesday] have got to get out the door ... bottom line," said Collins, who said Cherokee County has already reported a heavy Election Day turnout in Georgia. But for other conservative-leaning counties in the state, "they've got to pick it up."
Collins then used a football analogy to exacerbate Walker's final-hours pitch for Tuesday.
"A great running back like Herschel needs some blockers," Collins said.
For his runoff campaign, Walker has garnered the public support of prominent Republicans, such as Gov. Kemp, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, and former President Donald Trump.
However, town-by-town rallies can only take a candidate so far, reasoned Collins, when Sen. Warnock has a campaign fundraising advantage of roughly $30 million.
"Georgia voters got to dig deep, get it out [to vote], and get it done," Collins concluded.
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