Georgia state Rep. Colton Moore, R-Trenton, told the Times Free Press in a phone call Friday morning that he is running against Sen. Jeff Mullis, R-Chickamauga, for the Senate seat in District 53.
“I’m going up against the political boss of Northwest Georgia,” Moore said. “Against all odds.”
Moore made his first surprising announcement of the week on Monday when he said he wouldn’t be running for re-election for his District 1 House seat. On Friday morning he qualified to run for the seat in District 53.
Mullis, who has held his seat for two decades, is chairman of the powerful Senate Rules Committee, one of the more seasoned senators in Atlanta and is known as an important ally for lawmakers on both sides of the aisle when something needs to get done.
Moore said Friday he hasn’t felt supported by Mullis and has disagreed with the veteran lawmaker on several occasions since being elected in 2018. Moore said Mullis didn’t endorse him in 2018 and he felt as though Mullis has tried to “push me out of my seat.”