Republican state Sen. Greg Dolezal enters Georgia's lieutenant governor race

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ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia state Sen. Greg Dolezal entered a crowded race for lieutenant governor Tuesday with a hard-line MAGA campaign pledging to curb the “radical left.”

Dolezal, a Republican from Cumming, is now the fourth Republican state senator running for lieutenant governor.

His campaign launch video touts his support for President Donald Trump and promises to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion in “every government agency” in Georgia, remove “soft on crime” prosecutors and “stop transgender indoctrination” in schools.

“I stood with President Trump when it mattered most,” Dolezal said, noting that he led a committee that sought to punish Fulton District Attorney Fani Willis for using the state’s anti-racketeering law to accuse Trump and 18 others of scheming to overturn Trump’s 2020 presidential election loss to Democrat Joe Biden in Georgia.

Dolezal was one of four state senators who pushed unsuccessfully for a special session to consider overturning the election results by officially replacing Democratic electors with Republican electors for Trump. Dolezal also was a lead sponsor of the Riley Gaines Act, Georgia's new law banning transgender students from competing in girls sports.

Dolezal began his tenure in the legislature in 2018, pledging to limit how long he served. He reached that limit this year.

Republicans state Rep. David Clark and state Sen. Blake Tillery are also running. Tillery led legislation to crack down on illegal immigration.

They joined Republican Senate Majority Leader and “die-hard MAGA supporter” Steve Gooch, and state Senate President Pro-tem John Kennedy, a Macon lawyer who helped Gov. Brian Kemp and Georgia business leaders pass limits on lawsuits and civil verdicts.

Democrat state Sen. Josh McLaurin, a vocal critic of Republican policies in the state legislature, is so far the only Democrat in the race.

Burt Jones, the current Republican lieutenant governor, is now running for governor with Trump’s endorsement. Dolezal spoke at his August kickoff rally, saying Jones' opponents “weren’t willing to be MAGA when it might cost them.”

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Kramon is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.