President Donald Trump lashed out at ex-Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan in a late-night rant after Duncan announced he was officially leaving the Republican Party to become a Democrat.
“Failed former Lt. Governor Geoff Duncan, of Georgia, is a total loser. Was never able to get anything done, all he ever did was complain,” Trump posted on Truth Social around 1 a.m. Friday. “We didn’t want him in the Republican Party any longer, so I’m told he became a Democrat. Good riddance Geoff. You don’t even have a chance!!!”
Duncan, who served as Georgia’s lieutenant governor from 2019 to 2023, has been a vocal critic of Trump ever since the 2020 election. He refused to support Trump’s efforts to overturn President Joe Biden’s win in Georgia and has only grown more outspoken since.
“Donald Trump has been running a Ponzi scheme of propaganda for the better part of a decade and it’s finally catching up to him,” Duncan told The Daily Beast. “Like most Ponzi schemes, they collapse under their own weight and this situation will be no different.”
Duncan opted not to run for re-election in 2022, and earlier this year, Georgia’s Republican Party symbolically expelled him after he endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris at the Democratic National Convention.
But in an op-ed for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Duncan explained that his decision to switch parties wasn’t just about Trump.
“My decision was centered around my daily struggle to love my neighbor, as a Republican,” he wrote, adding that the GOP’s approach to healthcare, immigration, and gun policy clashed with his values.
He also took aim at Trump’s much-touted budget plan, which he said would have slashed key programs like Medicaid and food assistance. “We should all be looking for ways to love these kids better than continuing to send them to school hungry under the guise of an income tax break,” Duncan wrote.
His party switch is part of a broader trend this year, as several former Republican officials have made similar moves. Democrats have seen a slight uptick in support while Republicans have lost some ground.
A Gallup poll from earlier this month showed that 46% of U.S. adults identify as Democrats or lean Democratic, compared to 43% who align with Republicans. Much of that shift is being driven by independents leaning away from the GOP.
