Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., is facing criticism from Georgia's top child welfare official over his handling of the state's foster care system as he seeks re-election in one of the nation's most closely watched Senate races.
Georgia Division of Family & Children Services Director Candice Broce accused Ossoff in a post on X of using vulnerable children for political gain, saying the senator has attended hearings and released campaign advertisements highlighting problems at DFCS without delivering additional resources to fix them. "For five years, I've been in the trenches fighting for vulnerable children and foster care reform alongside thousands of DFCS workers," Broce wrote. "Trust us when we say Jon Ossoff is nowhere to be found."
Broce specifically disputed several claims in Ossoff's campaign advertisement titled "Our Kids," which highlights a scathing report and yearlong bipartisan investigation the senator conducted with Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., into Georgia's troubled foster care system. The DFCS director said Ossoff did not secure more funding for her agency after publicly describing it as incompetent and resource-strapped, did not obtain additional federal support for child advocacy centers despite state requests, and has not streamlined adoptions for children placed with families.
What the Right Is Saying
Broce defended her qualifications and rejected characterizations of her as unqualified or partisan. She pointed to her background as a health care attorney, former chief deputy executive counsel and chief operating officer to Gov. Brian Kemp, noting that roughly 40 state agencies including DFCS reported to her in that role.
Broce argued Ossoff could have used his federal position to pursue resources on Medicaid, behavioral health access and placement capacity rather than simply spotlighting DFCS failures for political benefit. She contrasted his record with that of Georgia's other Democratic senator, Raphael Warnock, calling the difference "stark." Broce also noted bipartisan support in the state legislature has delivered over $100 million in additional funds for child welfare improvements. "If you're going to beat us down, show up with something to make it better," she said. "He didn't do that."
What the Left Is Saying
Ossoff's campaign rejected Broce's criticism as politically motivated attacks on a nonpartisan oversight official. "Candice Broce is a partisan political hack irresponsibly placed in charge of care for the state's most vulnerable kids," an Ossoff campaign spokesperson told Fox News Digital. The campaign pointed to Ossoff's investigation that found children in Georgia's foster care system were likely sex trafficked while in state custody, as well as his passage of anti-trafficking legislation and efforts to preserve foster care funding when President Trump proposed cuts.
The campaign also cited testimony from juvenile court judges who accused Broce of suggesting that children with special needs be held in juvenile detention while DFCS searched for placements. "Instead of whining that her dangerous incompetence was made public, she should fix her broken agency," the spokesperson said. Ossoff's team emphasized that fixing a state agency is not the federal senator's responsibility, arguing Broce is deflecting from failures within her own department.
What the Numbers Show
Georgia's foster care system serves approximately 8,000 children in out-of-home placement at any given time, according to state data. The DFCS investigation Ossoff highlighted found systemic failures including inadequate oversight of group homes and potential trafficking of minors in state custody.
The bipartisan investigation conducted by Ossoff and Blackburn examined Georgia's Division of Family & Children Services over a one-year period, resulting in a report documenting conditions that prompted national attention. Federal funding for child welfare programs remains a key variable, with the Ossoff campaign claiming credit for preserving approximately $30 million in foster care support during federal budget negotiations.
Georgia is considered a perennial swing state, having voted for Trump in 2024 after supporting Biden in 2020 and Obama in 2012 and 2008. The Senate race featuring Ossoff seeking a second term is expected to be among the most competitive in the 2026 midterm elections.
The Bottom Line
The dispute highlights tensions between federal oversight authority and state implementation responsibility in child welfare policy. Broce's criticism suggests constituents working directly with foster children see a gap between congressional hearings and actual system improvement, while Ossoff's campaign argues his investigation exposed problems that had been hidden from public view.
Ossoff is seeking re-election as part of the 2026 Senate map, where Democrats are defending several seats in competitive states. The Foster Care accountability issue represents both a potential vulnerability and an opportunity for him to demonstrate bipartisan work on a nonpartisan topic. Broce's public criticism from within state government provides Republican opponents with ammunition to question Ossoff's effectiveness ahead of the election.
Voters in Georgia will ultimately assess whether congressional investigations translate into meaningful improvements for children in state care, or whether the Senate race is being fought over rhetoric rather than results.