Stacey Abrams, a Democrat who lost the 2018 Georgia governor’s race to Republican Brian Kemp, has announced another gubernatorial bid in the Peach State.
“I’m running for Governor because opportunity in our state shouldn’t be determined by zip code, background or access to power,” Abrams tweeted.
The former member of the Georgia House of Representatives lost the 2018 contest to Kemp by a margin of less than 1.4 percentage points, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution.
If Kemp manages to secure the GOP nomination, and Abrams locks up the Democratic nomination, the two could face off once again during the state’s 2022 gubernatorial contest.
While Trump campaigned for Kemp in 2018, according to the Associated Press, he has become a vociferous critic of the current governor, which could prove problematic for Kemp as he heads into the GOP primary contest. Trump has said that he will campaign against Kemp.
A victory for Abrams would be historic, as she would become the state’s first black governor and the first black female elected governor in American history, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution.
Joe Biden won the state during the 2020 presidential contest, marking the first time a Democrat took the Peach State during a presidential election since 1992.
Then in January of 2021, Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock won U.S. Senate election runoffs in the state. Warnock, who won a special election runoff, is up for re-election in 2022.
“With Stacey Abrams in control, Georgia would have shut down, students would have been barred from their classrooms, and woke politics would be the law of the land and the lesson plan in our schools,” Gov. Kemp tweeted. “Next November’s election for Governor is a battle for the soul of our state. I’m in the fight against Stacey Abrams, the failed Biden agenda, and their woke allies to keep Georgia the best place to live, work, and raise a family.”