ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - A federal judge has dismissed an attempt by Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr to prevent Lt. Gov. Burt Jones from using his leadership committee to raise unlimited funds for Jones’ gubernatorial campaign.

The ruling, issued Thursday morning from U.S. District Court Judge Victoria Marie Calvert, was in response to Carr’s attempt to cut off Jones’ ability to access money from a fundraising vehicle that allows Georgia’s governor, lieutenant governor and legislative leaders to raise money.

Both Jones and Carr are running for the GOP nomination for Georgia governor in next year’s nationally watched gubernatorial campaign.

Carr argued the leadership committee violated his First Amendment right to free speech, as well as his 14th Amendment right to equal protection by setting up a campaign finance structure that favors Jones and limits how much Carr can spend on his campaign.

The 2021 state law that created leadership committees doesn’t grant Carr or other candidates access to the fundraising vehicle.

Instead, Carr only has a regular campaign committee, which is limited to raising $8,400 from each donor for his primary campaign, as well as $4,200 for any primary runoff.

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Last month, Carr asked the Georgia Ethics Commission to determine if Jones illegally lent $10 million to his campaign committee to evade restrictions under state campaign finance law.

The ethics commission declined Carr’s request.

On the Democratic side of 2026’s Georgia gubernatorial primary are former state Labor commissioner Michael Thurmond, state Sen. Jason Esteves, state Rep. Derrick Jackson, former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and businessman/pastor Olu Brown.

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