Reality TV star says she’s serious about her run for Congress

“I’m going to do everything I said I’m going to do — just like I did for dentistry, just like I did for reality TV,” Kimes said during a recent interview on The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s “Politically Georgia” podcast. “And I’m going to be a great congresswoman. I’m going to do this job so well people are going to feel bad. They’re going to look bad.”

Scott has said he is seeking another term this year, but other current and former elected officials have spent months campaigning to unseat him in the Democratic primary to be held in May. Concerns about his age and health, on top of Scott’s limited public appearances and paltry fundraising totals have contributed to speculation that he is particularly vulnerable as he seeks a 13th term.

Kimes’ relatively late entry into the race last fall, around the same time as the latest season of “Married to Medicine” was launching, caused a stir. It is likely that the primary will result in a runoff featuring Scott and one of the other challengers in the race. Along with Kimes, state Rep. Jasmine Clark and former Gwinnett County School Board Chairman Everton Blair are among the higher-profile Democrats seeking the seat.

Kimes says she brings something to the race that the others with political experience do not. The dental practice she has operated for roughly 25 years makes her all too familiar with the rising costs and red tape in America’s health care system and the challenges of running a small business.

Her face is on giant billboards around the region with the name of her business, “Smiles by Dr. Heavenly.” But it is the TV show that introduced her in households across the nation.

Although there were initial rumors that network Bravo had not approved of Kimes launching a campaign, she says the network executives have been supportive. But the same can’t be said for all of her “Married to Medicine” castmates, some of whom criticized her campaign kickoff and decision to tap another castmate and political novice, Quad Webb, as her manager.

Credit: Phylicia J.L. Munn/Bravo

Credit: Phylicia J.L. Munn/Bravo

Particularly vocal was Toya Bush-Harris, a frequent sparring partner of Kimes, who openly questioned whether she could withstand the pressures of a campaign when she was so frequently embroiled in conflicts on the show.

“To even think that Heavenly is capable of going into a political setting where they’re going to attack her,” Bush-Harris said in one episode. “Girl, Heavenly can’t handle that.”

On a recent episode of the show, Kimes asked cast members to participate in a mock town hall but grew frustrated when they questioned whether she could withstand the pressures of a campaign.

Cast member Brandi Milton asked what Kimes would say to voters who are concerned with her history of arguments and fights on the show.

“People want to look to their political leaders to have certain morals, certain standards,” Milton said.

Another castmate, Dr. Simone Whitmore, applauded the pushback.

“Clock it, Brandi, clock it,” Whitmore said. “You’re saying what everyone already knows about” Kimes, she said, using a derogatory term instead of her name.

Blair, who has raised more than any other candidate in the race, compared Kimes to another reality star-turned-politician: President Donald Trump. Voters in the district that includes suburbs south and east of Atlanta deserve better, he said.

“We have a reality TV star in the White House, and it’s not going well for us at all,” he said. “This is a very serious position, this is a serious race, and we need people who are committed to the community, have established community leadership and presence, and aren’t just like kind of popping up for a quick moment to enrich themselves or to further their fame.”

But others who have taken the time to hear Kimes out believe she is the real deal. That includes former state Rep. Donna McLeod, who now spends her spare time knocking on doors on Kimes’ behalf.

The two did not know each other before Kimes launched that State House bid, and McLeod wasn’t initially supportive because of her allegiance to incumbent Carter. But the two met, and McLeod liked what she heard. When Kimes switched to run for Congress, McLeod gave a full endorsement.

McLeod said she wants Scott out because she has disagreed with some of his recent votes, including on a measure honoring Charlie Kirk, and disliked hearing that he chose not to cast a ballot in the 2024 election when former Vice President Kamala Harris was on the ballot. She knows Blair and Clark and said neither fits her vision for what the district needs.

“I felt her to be the most easy person to connect to people,” McLeod said of Kimes.

She has never watched an episode of “Married to Medicine,” so she doesn’t know the sometimes shouting and cursing version of the candidate. Only one person brought that up on the campaign trail as having a negative perception of Kimes, McLeod said.

She wants Kimes to continue spending her time leading up to the primary introducing herself to voters and letting them know there is more to her than what they have seen on TV.

“It isn’t like she’s got it locked down, right?” McLeod said. But the combination of her engaging personality and name recognition makes her the best candidate to challenge Scott, she said.

Kimes said she is up for the challenge. Since switching to a congressional bid, she has dropped Webb as her campaign manager and hired a professional staff, including longtime Democratic strategist Fred Hicks.

Her platform includes tried-and-true Democratic positions like supporting Medicaid expansion and expanded access to affordable child care. She said she feels called to run for Congress and has no doubt in her mind she will be the first reality star to be sent to Capitol Hill, even if it means giving up her TV career in the process.

“I want to tell anybody that thinks I’m not serious, ‘think about why I’m doing this,’” she said. “This is a great sacrifice for anyone, but I’m telling you this is personal for me to do this job, and I know I can do it better than anybody else. Because when I put my mind to it, I know I can do anything.”