ATLANTA — Former President Donald Trump on Monday endorsed a conservative Georgia congressman in his bid to unseat the Republican secretary of state who refused to help overturn the November election results.

Rep. Jody Hice, a tea party favorite and Trump acolyte, is the first major challenger to Brad Raffensperger since the secretary of state certified President Joe Biden's narrow victory in Georgia and disputed Trump's false allegations of fraud. 

Trump's endorsement marks his most direct attempt at retribution against those he blames for his loss and reaffirms his continued influence over the Republican Party.

"Jody has been a steadfast fighter for conservative Georgia values and is a staunch ally of the America First agenda," Trump said in a statement that repeated the unsupported allegations of fraud. "Unlike the current Georgia Secretary of State, Jody leads out front with integrity. I have 100% confidence in Jody to fight for Free, Fair, and Secure Elections in Georgia, in line with our beloved U.S. Constitution."

Raffensperger declined comment through a spokesperson.

Hice didn't mention Trump in his announcement but has said previously that he expected the former president's support. Trump has said separately that he also wants to help defeat Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, another Republican, in 2022.

"Every Georgian, in fact every American, has the right to be outraged by the actions and, simultaneously, the inaction of our Secretary of State," Hice said in a statement Monday.

The former president has made clear his intentions to target Raffensperger and Kemp, also a Republican, for their parts in ratifying Biden's victory.

"I'll be here in a year in a half campaigning against your governor and your crazy secretary of state," Trump said at a Georgia rally on Jan. 4, the eve of two Senate runoffs that Democrats swept to win control of the chamber.

Both Kemp and Raffensperger have said they were simply following the state's election law and fulfilling their required duties.

The developments Monday drew immediate plaudits from the right. 

"The establishment still doesn't get how popular Trump is with the base, but they will," said Debbie Dooley, an early tea party organizer and Trump ally who is close to Hice. "We've known Raffensperger was dead, and Jody can excite the base and raise money. This is a serious challenge."

No heavyweight primary opponent has emerged yet against Kemp. Some Georgia Republicans are looking to former Rep. Doug Collins as Trump conservatives' ideal challenger. But those close to Collins, one of Trump's most high-profile House defenders during impeachment proceedings, say he is more likely to make another bid for the Senate after his unsuccessful campaign last year in a special election ultimately won by Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Democrat. 

Collins was Trump's choice in 2019 for a Senate vacancy, opened by Republican Johnny Isakson's retirement. But Kemp opted for Kelly Loeffler. Collins finished third in a jungle primary behind Warnock and Loeffler last November before Warnock prevailed in a runoff. 

Hice has not cut as high a profile since his election in 2014 as Collins did, but the 60-year-old has been a loyal Trump lieutenant. He was part of a group of Republican officials in Georgia who relentlessly pushed Trump's false claims of voter fraud last fall. He endorsed a lawsuit filed by Texas against Georgia and other battleground states seeking to overturn Biden's victory in the U.S. Supreme Court — a suit the high court rejected — and he objected to the certification of Electoral College votes even after a pro-Trump mob violently stormed the U.S. Capitol. ___

Associated Press reporter Ben Nadler contributed to this story.