A Georgia mayor will challenge U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde in 2026 Republican primary
Hours before the start of a federal government shutdown, Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., and other Republican conservatives arrive for a meeting with Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., at the Capitol in Washington, Dec. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
GAINESVILLE, Ga. (AP) — A northeast Georgia mayor says he will challenge U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde in the Republican primary in 2026, which could capitalize on discontent among business leaders with Clyde’s ultraconservative approach to representing Georgia’s 9th Congressional District.
Gainesville Mayor Sam Couvillon announced his bid for office Tuesday, billing himself as someone who will “deliver real results.”
Clyde is the second Georgia congressional incumbent to pick up a declared 2026 primary challenger. Democratic state Sen. Emanuel Jones, recently said he will seek his party’s nomination for the 13th District in Atlanta’s southern and eastern suburbs. That seat is currently held by U.S. Rep. David Scott.
Couvillon has been mayor of Gainesville since 2022 and has served on the City Council there from 2013 to 2021. The city has a weak mayor system, with a city manager running day-to-day affairs. In his announcement, though, Couvillon claimed credit for the city’s strong budget position and its ability to attract jobs.
The insurance executive is pledging that he’ll back President Donald Trump without explicitly mentioning Clyde.
“While most politicians are more concerned with making a point than getting things done, I’ll be ready on Day 1 to support President Trump’s agenda, secure our southern border, tackle inflation and the rising cost of living, and stand with our farmers and small businesses,” Couvillon said in a statement.
Clyde is a gun dealer who won the seat in 2020 after Doug Collins stepped down. He won a runoff after a nine-way primary and then coasted to victory in the heavily Republican district. He’s faced little significant opposition since.
The incumbent has irritated some business-aligned conservatives. He hesitated openly before voting for House Speaker Mike Johnson earlier in January and was among Republicans who ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023.
Clyde has also voted against a number of debt and spending measures, including one version of a bill that eventually passed to provide emergency aid to victims of Hurricane Helene and additional aid to farmers.
Clyde has most been noted in Congress for efforts to curtail gun control measures. Clyde also resisted the use of metal detectors in the House.
In 2021, Clyde said that “there were some rioters” among those who entered the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 but said it was a “bold-faced lie” to call it an insurrection and likened it in some ways to a “normal tourist visit.”