Congressional Republicans head to Georgia in effort to protect Tom Price's old seat

Florida Republican Congressman Brian Mast was in Georgia over the weekend to campaign for Republican Karen Handel, who faces Democrat Jon Ossoff in a special June 20 House election that has shattered spending records and drawn the attention of President Donald Trump.

On Armed Forces Day, decorated Army combat veteran Mast was joined by Rep. Will Hurd, R-Texas, a former undercover CIA officer in the Middle East and South Asia, at a Handel campaign event.

"It was a great honor to have both Congressman Brian Mast and Congressman Will Hurd in Georgia today as we honored those who have served and are still serving in our nation's military," said Handel in a statement released by her campaign.

“These men understand the difference between talk and commitment, between intention and results. They were tested and they continued to persevere and it would be an honor to serve side by side with them in Congress.”

Handel and Ossoff are vying to replace Tom Price, who left the Georgia 6th District seat to be Trump's secretary of Health and Human Services.

The seat has been solidly Republican, but Democrat Ossoff got 48 percent in a crowded April 18 election to nearly win the seat. Because Ossoff didn't get a majority, he and Handel — who finished second with 20 percent — will compete in the June 20 runoff.

As it became clear Ossoff had a chance to win the seat outright in the April 18 election, Trump recorded a robocall and tweeted against Ossoff in hopes of forcing a runoff. Trump also attended a fundraiser for Handel when he was in Atlanta for the NRA convention last month.

The Handel-Ossoff campaign is the most expensive House race in history, Politico recently calculated, with candidates, parties and outside groups topping $29.7 million in spending.

The previous record was then $29.6 million spent in a 2012 race in which Democrat Patrick Murphy unseated Republican Rep. Allen West for the Palm Beach-Treasure Coast seat that Mast now holds.

Cox Media Group