Stacey Abrams deflected in a debate Monday evening when asked about whether she would accept the results of Georgia’s governor’s race in November after she did not concede in 2018’s election.
Debate moderator Greg Bluestein asked Ms Abrams about her non-concession in 2018 and whether she would commit to accepting the outcome of the vote and what it shows.
Ms Abrams said that in 2018, she acknowledged that Governor Brian Kemp had won the election. At the time, Mr Kemp served as secretary of state, Georgia’s top elections officer. Brad Raffensperger, who became the subject of former president Donald Trump’s ire during the 2020 election, succeeded Mr Kemp in the position.
“I then proceeded to lay out in great detail the challenges faced by voters under his leadership as secretary of state,” she said, including a group of voters who were arrested after they used absentee ballots. She noted how 80,000 complaints had come in by the time of the election and it led to federal investigation.
Ms Abrams said that the investigation was the longest in recent history and proved her right.
“We didn’t win every single claim, but we forced massive changes to the election laws,” she said. “And unfortunately, Brian Kemp and Brad Raffensperger have decided to restore their greatest hits.”
Ms Abrams has received widespread criticism after her refusal to concede the gubernatorial election, particularly after Mr Trump called the 2020 presidential election results rigged.
“I will always acknowledge the outcome of elections, but I will never deny access to every voter,” she said.
However, Ms Abrams did not deny that Mr Kemp would be governor and did not try and stop him from being governor in the way Mr Trump did after the 2020 election results.
Ms Abrams and Mr Kemp are locked in a rematch after their 2018 race. Polling has shown Ms Abrams trailing against Mr Kemp significantly. An Atlanta Journal-Constitution/Georgia News Collaborative poll showed Mr Kemp winning 51 per cent of the vote compared to Ms Abrams’s 41 per cent.
