Herschel Walker Wins Republican Primary in Georgia
NBC News Herschel Walker
Former football star Herschel Walker has won Georgia's Republican Senate primary, the Associated Press reported Tuesday.
Following his primary win, Walker will face off against Democratic Senator and Pastor Raphael G. Warnock in the general election in November.
Walker's victory was called by the AP at 7:56 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
Walker, a College Football Hall of Famer who played for the University of Georgia and was an NFL running back, announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate last summer.
"I will stand up for conservative values and get our country moving in the right direction," he said at the time. "I'm a kid from a small town in Georgia who lived the American Dream and I'm ready to fight to keep that dream alive for you too."
Walker secured the endorsement of former President Donald Trump in September, who called the former athlete a "friend, a Patriot, and an outstanding American who is going to be a GREAT United States Senator."
In recent years and months, Walker has made headlines for at times controversial comments, including those made about a "spray" or a "mist" that can "kill" the virus that causes COVID-19 which made headlines following an interview with conservative commentator and author Glenn Beck in 2020.
Walker claimed the product, which does not exist, was "EPA-, FDA-approved."
He also raised eyebrows after he expressed skepticism about human evolution during an appearance at a local church in March, when he said, "If [evolution] is true, why are there still apes? Think about it."
Walker's personal life has also been the subject of headlines.
In 2008, Walker wrote about having dissociative identity disorder, hoping to show a different portrayal of the condition.
At the time, his ex-wife said that he had violent episodes in their marriage, including holding a gun to her head — which CNN reported he did not deny, saying he had blackouts and memory loss and did not remember the episodes.
"I'm troubled by my actions and will always deeply regret any pain I've caused Cindy," he said at the time.
