On January 6, a rioter during the US House of Representatives runoff storms off the debate stage in Atlanta

” Your choice. It’s the dollar against the currency,” Hand said before leaving the set of the downtown Atlanta studio after the first question. “And that’s when I get back in the truck and head back to southwest Georgia because I have two races to win.”

Credit: file

Credit: file

Johnson, who appeared stunned by his opponent’s decision, later called it “pure political theater” in an interview.

“He did a great disservice to voters by not being prepared to stand up to the questions he thought were coming,” said Johnson, a former federal student aid official. “He walked out of his job interview.”

It’s the latest flashpoint in a Republican race to take on Democratic U.S. Rep. Sanford Bishop, a 16-term lawmaker widely favored to win.

Hand, a construction worker and first-time candidate, opened his speech by saying he was “not interested in debating the issues of the 2nd District with a man who doesn’t even reside there, especially one who orchestrates attacks on my wife.

(Johnson said he lives a few hundred yards from the southwest Georgia district; candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives are not required to live in their district to run for Congress .)

Hand’s said after the debate that his remarks referred to a recent news conference hosted by Michael Nixon, a third-place finisher in the May primary who supported Johnson. Nixon also used the platform to highlight Hand’s wife Mandy’s history of drug charges dating back to 2008, before they were married.

At the time, Hand called the attention to his wife “disgusting and despicable” and, before leaving the stage, made it clear that she was still on his mind. Johnson said he played no role in the news conference.

“The choice is yours. It’s dollars versus currency,” Hand said before leaving the downtown Atlanta studio. “And that’s when I get back in the truck and go back into southwest Georgia because I have two races to win.”

The walkout caught debate organizers by surprise as he walked off camera. Moderator Donna Lowry asked: “Are you not staying sir? Are you leaving?”

The camera then turned to Johnson: “Wow, I don’t even know how to react.”

Although the two Republicans had little chance of defeating Bishop, Hand’s involvement in the Jan. 6 mob brought more statewide and national attention to the contest.

Hand and his wife were arrested in 2022 after a plethora of evidence and captioned footage presented in court led authorities to the Taylor County couple.

Both pleaded guilty in 2022 to a misdemeanor charge of unlawfully protesting at the U.S. Capitol. They were sentenced to 20 days in federal prison and six months of probation. Since then, Hand has been unapologetic about his role as he runs for office.