American billionaire Rick Jackson's Georgia governor campaign spends $220 million

American billionaire Rick Jackson's campaign for governor of Georgia has spent about $220 million, most of it from his own pocket, a record for a Georgia election.

The total covers Jackson's campaign and his leadership committee, For All Georgians, according to state campaign finance filings. Jackson, the founder of Atlanta-area medical staffing company Jackson Healthcare, has put more than $203 million of his personal fortune into the race since he launched it in February. That includes $25 million on Aug. 14, another $25 million on Sept. 11, $38 million on Oct. 5 and $4.5 million filed after the Oct. 20 reporting deadline.

Jackson, 72, the Republican nominee, faces Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms, a former mayor of Atlanta, on Tuesday, Nov. 3. The winner will succeed Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, who cannot run for a third straight term. A poll released last week showed the race deadlocked, with 8% of likely voters undecided.

Where the money went

Television dominated the spending. Nearly $165 million, about three-quarters of the total, went to broadcast and cable advertising. Smart Media Group, a Virginia-based media firm, received about $126.4 million, and Ballast, a Delaware-based firm that handled much of the TV work, was paid $37.3 million.

At least $24 million went to direct mail and other voter outreach, including at least $8 million for mail alone. Consulting firm GMRP received about $17.7 million, Storytellers Group $8.4 million and Quiver, which supplied mail, signs and other services, about $6.4 million. The campaign spent nearly $6 million on polling, $4.4 million on phone banks and about $4.3 million on door-knocking and get-out-the-vote work. Salaries for staff and consultants came to about $2 million.

About $108 million of the total was spent winning the Republican nomination. Jackson took 32.5% of the vote in the May 19 primary, forcing a runoff, and then beat Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, who had President Donald Trump's endorsement, in a June 16 runoff. Nearly $100 million more went out between Aug. 1 and Oct. 20. The figure is close to the $216 million Tom Steyer spent on his unsuccessful run for governor of California, a state with about three times Georgia's population.

A wide money gap

The Republican Governors Association has spent $21.5 million backing Jackson, including $11.5 million it gave to his leadership committee, which has raised at least $22.8 million since Aug. 1. Jackson had about $22 million left across his accounts on Oct. 20.

Bottoms raised $23.2 million from Aug. 1 to Oct. 20, nearly triple what she had raised through July, and finished the period with about $2.2 million in cash. The Democratic Governors Association has given her leadership committee more than $11 million. Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg gave her $1.5 million, and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker committed $1 million after the deadline.

Jackson started in medical recruiting in his twenties and built Jackson Healthcare into a privately held group based in Alpharetta, Georgia, that places doctors, nurses and other staff in hospitals and health systems. The company reports more than $3 billion in annual revenue and earned nearly $1 billion from Georgia state contracts between 2020 and 2026, mostly during the Covid-19 pandemic. On his state disclosure form, Jackson entered his net worth as $999,999,999.99, the highest figure the form allows. His campaign has said his fortune tops $3 billion.

His holding company, Jackson Investment Group, is fighting the Internal Revenue Service in U.S. Tax Court. The IRS says the company underreported its 2019 taxable income by $72 million and is seeking about $38 million in tax and penalties after disallowing deductions tied to film rights, real estate and several philanthropic ventures. The company has said in court filings that the IRS erred, that it followed the rules and relied on independent appraisals, and that it did not act in bad faith.

Jackson has pledged to cut Georgia's state income tax in half within four years or not seek a second term. Bottoms has said he is trying to buy the election.