Trump asked Kemp to call a special session and convince state legislators to select their own electors that would support him, according to the source. He also asked the Republican governor to order an audit of absentee ballot signatures.
Kemp explained that he did not have the authority to order such an audit and denied the request to call a special session, the source said.
Kemp spokesman Cody Hall confirmed the governor spoke with the President, but, when asked about the conversation, only said that Trump offered his condolences on the death of Harrison Deal, a young Loeffler campaign staffer.
Hall told CNN earlier this week — following a separate push from Trump to intervene in the state’s elections process — that “Georgia law prohibits the Governor from interfering in elections.”
“The Secretary of State, who is an elected constitutional officer, has oversight over elections that cannot be overridden by executive order,” Hall said in a statement at the time. “As the Governor has said repeatedly, he will continue to follow the law and encourage the Secretary of State to take reasonable steps — including a sample audit of signatures — to restore trust and address serious issues that have been raised.”
Despite the pummeling from their party leader, Georgia GOP election officials have pushed back against Trump’s claims of fraud in the state.
The governor does not plan to attend Trump’s rally in Valdosta, Georgia, Saturday night, due to the sudden death of a close friend of the family, Hall told CNN.
At the Georgia rally, the President spent the majority of the early portion of his remarks falsely claiming he won the election, taking shots at Kemp and saying the Senate runoffs will be rigged.
The President also ran through a litany of issues that he envisions with a Democrat-controlled Senate, including packing the Supreme Court, ending the filibuster, abolishing second amendment rights, and making Washington, DC, and other places, states to secure more Democratic votes in Congress.
Trump said that winning the two Senate seats in Georgia is the “last line of defense to save America,” a tacit acknowledgment that he lost the presidential election.
This story has been updated with additional developments Saturday.
CNN’s Ryan Nobles and Jason Hoffman contributed to this report.
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