In the race to replace Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, Atlanta commercial real estate luminaries are lining up behind both the Republican and Democratic contenders. But the majority of their money is flowing to GOP candidate Rick Jackson.

Jackson, CEO of healthcare staffing company Jackson Healthcare, and former Democratic Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms are vying to take Kemp’s spot in January after he finishes up his second term. The winner will be tasked with addressing housing affordability and healthcare costs, issues that are critical to the state’s CRE industry.

As of July, Jackson has amassed at least $67K in donations from individuals associated with companies listed as being in commercial real estate, according to a Bisnow analysis of campaign disclosure records. Bottoms has gotten at least $30K.

Among Jackson’s 10 largest donors so far this election cycle is Regent Partners founder and Chairman David Allman, who donated $21,600 over 2026, according to Georgia State Ethics Commission records. Allman’s firm developed the Sovereign mixed-use tower in Buckhead and owns the iconic King and Queen office buildings in Central Perimeter.

“I’ve known Rick for a long time. I know his story, and I know his values. I know his heart and compassion for all Georgians,” Allman told Bisnow in an interview.

“From a housing and affordable housing perspective, that’s something we as an industry ought to weigh in on,” he said. “I think he will do that. I think he’ll listen and he will act.”

Bottoms has the backing of Ronald Abramson, a prominent D.C.-area real estate attorney with the firm Buchanan who has infused $31,400 into Bottoms’ coffers. 

Bottoms appears to have a larger share of out-of-state supporters and key media and entertainment personalities, such as Eagles member Don Henley and Clifford Harris Jr., the rap artist and actor who goes by the stage name T.I. She also has a larger tally of donors described as being in the real estate industry that have given much smaller, one-time donations.

The race for governor has become a statistical dead heat. Polling firm Quantus Insights, in a survey of 815 likely voters, showed Bottoms with a slight lead, with 46.4% of likely voters, compared to 44.9% for Jackson, but with nearly 8% of voters undecided, Atlanta News First reported. 

“The margin is narrow enough to leave Georgia where it has spent much of the past decade: at the center of the national political battlefield,” Quantus said in its analysis, according to ANF.

The gubernatorial primary was held in May, followed by a runoff for the Republican nomination in June.

The Bottoms and Jackson campaigns both say they are focused on affordability for Georgians, including with healthcare, housing and education.

Jackson has pledged to cut the state’s income tax in half, cut property taxes and expand rural healthcare options, ANF reported.

“I will treat affordability like a crisis,” Jackson said during a July campaign rally in Cleveland, Georgia, describing his approach as governor. “Because for too many families, it already is.”

Bottoms proposes infusing more funding into stabilizing rural hospital systems, establishing a state-run prescription cost-savings board, and fast-tracking housing permitting for more workforce and affordable housing developments.

Kirk Rich, a principal with the real estate brokerage firm Avison Young who recently held a campaign fundraiser at his home for Bottoms, said the election for governor is about distancing from President Donald Trump’s policies. Rich said his views on the election are independent of his role at Avison Young.

“I can’t support a competitor who is so ingrained in the MAGA Trump world. I just think Trump is a toxic force,” Rich said. “I think Keisha, if she became governor, will work closely with Republican folks. She’s not coming in to do radical things.”

Last month, Trump officially endorsed Jackson, who has repeatedly aligned his platform with the president during the campaign.

Other CRE executives financially backing Jackson include Collaborative CRE CEO David Tyndall, who gave $4,800 in June, and Niles Bolton, founder of Atlanta architectural firm Niles Bolton Associates, who donated $4K in May. Tishman Speyer Managing Director Jim Meyer gave $2K in July, as did Integral Group CEO Egbert Perry.

Integral spokesperson Rick White told Bisnow via email that Perry “was asked by a business associate to make a contribution to Rick Jackson’s campaign and did so, just as he has contributed $2,500 to Keisha Lance Bottoms’ campaign.”

He added that Perry “does not know Mr. Jackson personally, and the contribution should not be characterized as an endorsement or as evidence that he supports Mr. Jackson’s candidacy.”

Several CRE executives also donated to Bottoms' campaign, including Rod Mullice, head of Atlanta development firm Windsor Stevens Holdings, who gave a series of donations totaling more than $5K, and Gerald Alley, CEO of minority-owned Texas construction firm Con-Real, who donated $8,400 in June. Former Jamestown executive Stephen Zoukis gave $1K in July, as did Tishman Speyer senior advisor Cheryl Effron.

Jackson poured more than $108M of his own finances and $13M in donations into his campaign between June 11 and July 31, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. 

Bottoms raised more than $5.6M during the same period, including $1.6M from the Democratic Governors Association, according to the AJC.

Cheri Morris, president of mixed-use development firm Morris & Fellows, said Jackson and Bottoms likely share the same philosophy about economic development, a hallmark that Kemp pushed during his two terms as governor, when Hyundai built its Metaplant outside of Savannah and TriNet opened a 150K SF Central Perimeter office that is creating 750 new jobs. 

Morris said she has yet to contribute to either Jackson or Bottoms. 

“While Rick Jackson is a significant player in the world of medical real estate, Keisha Lance Bottoms has governmental experience with more exposure to economic development channels,” Morris said. “I have to believe [Bottoms has] more exposure to the work of government specifically supporting good business and good economic development.”