President Donald Trump tweeted his support of Karen Handel, the Republican candidate in Georgia's special election, on election day morning. | Getty Trump slams Dem Ossoff as Georgia voters head to the polls

President Donald Trump began his last minute pitch to Georgia voters just before 6 a.m. Tuesday, warning them that Democrat Jon Ossoff wants to raise taxes and is “weak on crime and security” while his GOP opponent, Karen Handel, is just the opposite.

“Democrat Jon Ossoff, who wants to raise your taxes to the highest level and is weak on crime and security, doesn't even live in district,” Trump wrote on Twitter early Tuesday morning, the start of a two-post flurry. “KAREN HANDEL FOR CONGRESS. She will fight for lower taxes, great healthcare strong security-a hard worker who will never give up! VOTE TODAY.”


Voters in Georgia’s sixth Congressional district will choose Tuesday between Ossoff and Handel, the two candidates vying for the suburban Atlanta seat left vacant by Tom Price, Trump’s secretary of health and human services. Tuesday’s election is a runoff that follows one last April in which Ossoff finished well ahead of a multi-candidate GOP field but did not hit the 50 percent threshold that would have allowed him to win the seat outright without a runoff.

Price won the seat last November by more than 23 percentage points, but Democrats, eager to win a seat last held by a member of the president’s cabinet, have poured money into the race, making it the most expensive House election on record.

Polls show the race essentially even heading into Election Day, with Handel holding a lead of less than a quarter of a point according to the Real Clear Politics polling average.

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Ossoff, running for office for the first time at 30-years-old, has faced criticism from Trump and others that he does not live in the sixth district, a situation the Democrat has explained by saying that he is currently living with his girlfriend while she completes medical school at Emory University just outside the district’s borders.

He has said he intends to move back into the district once his girlfriend’s studies are complete, an explanation that has not insulated him from attacks from the president, who has noted Ossoff’s residency issue more than once in posts to Twitter.

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“Karen Handel's opponent in #GA06 can't even vote in the district he wants to represent because he doesn't even live there!” Trump wrote on Twitter Monday evening. “He wants to raise taxes and kill healthcare. On Tuesday, #VoteKarenHandel.”

Ossoff said on Tuesday morning that he thinks the competency and integrity concerns of the Trump administration have increased and that this a matter of public interest.

“It speaks to a greater need of accountability on effective congressional oversight,” Ossoff said. “I won’t hesitate to stand up to him if he threatens our interests or values.”

Diamond Naga Siu contributed to this report.