Former President Donald Trump and Georgia Governor Brian Kemp made their first joint appearance since 2020 on October 4, 2024, as they surveyed the extensive damage left by Hurricane Helene in Georgia. The two Republican leaders, who had previously been at odds over the 2020 election, presented a united front during a visit to a temporary relief shelter in Evans, Georgia.
During the visit, they received a briefing on the storm’s destruction, which claimed 33 lives in Georgia and ravaged the state’s agriculture, with crops like cotton, peanuts, and pecans heavily impacted. Governor Kemp expressed concern about the widespread devastation, highlighting significant losses in the state’s dairy and poultry industries, as well as damage to millions of acres of timberland.
Trump and Kemp took the opportunity to criticize the Biden administration’s handling of the disaster response, with Trump alleging mismanagement of federal funds by FEMA. Despite past tensions, Trump downplayed any lingering conflict with Kemp, emphasizing that they have “always worked together very well.”
The former president’s stop in Georgia was part of a broader effort to survey hurricane damage in the Southeast, with further plans to visit North Carolina.
