ATLANTA — Former Democrat Vernon Jones dropped out of the Republican race for governor Monday to run for an open U.S. House seat, a move that gives ex-U.S. Sen. David Perdue a clearer shot at the state’s top job and provides yet another test of Donald Trump’s influence in Georgia.
Jones punctuated his long-expected decision to switch races with an endorsement of Perdue, a Trump-backed candidate who contends he’s the only Republican who can defeat Democrat Stacey Abrams in November.
An also-ran with no credible shot to win the race for governor, Jones trailed both Perdue and incumbent Brian Kemp in fundraising and public polls despite his attempts to rebrand himself as a Trump loyalist.
