House Speaker Paul Ryan in GA campaigning for Karen Handel

SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. - House Speaker Paul Ryan was in Georgia on Monday to campaign for Karen Handel, the Republican candidate in the special election to fill an open U.S. House seat from Georgia's 6th Congressional District.

The district covers a portion of the north metro Atlanta area, including parts of Fulton, Cobb, and DeKalb counties. The seat was vacated by Tom Price, who now heads the Department of Health and Human Services in the Trump Administration.

Monday afternoon, House Speaker Ryan joined Handel for a campaign rally at Atlanta Marriott Perimeter Center.  State and local Republican leaders warmed up the crowd before Handel and Speaker Ryan took the stage, telling supporters the Republican party has a dogfight on its hands and just over a month to get Karen Handel over the finish line.  They said money is coming in from all over the country and whoever campaigns the hardest between now and June 20 will win the race.  Speaker Ryan told supporters "Georgians will help determine the direction of this country."

Handel's opponent, Democrat Jon Ossoff, will also be campaigning in Sandy Springs on Monday at a Young Democrats of Atlanta Mixer. The event will take place at Fado Irish Pub in Buckhead. 

The runoff will take place on June 20.