Stacey Abrams supporters still enthusiastic as vote counting continues
It's been five days since Georgia residents hit the polls to elect Stacey Abrams, Brian Kemp, or Ted Metz as their new governor.
It’s been five days since Georgia residents hit the polls to elect Stacey Abrams (Democrat), Brian Kemp (Republican) or Ted Metz (Libertarian) as their new governor and there is still no officially declared winner.
As of today, the Abrams campaign released the below vote count numbers:
Total Votes Cast: 3,929,886
Votes for Stacey Abrams: 1,916,931
Votes for Brian Kemp: 1,975,806
Votes for Ted Metz: 37,149
Votes to Make a Runoff: 21,727
Votes to Force a Recount: 19,383
According to the Abrams campaign there are still thousands of votes yet to be counted and as such, Stacey Abrams has not conceded the election, even though Brian Kemp has declared himself the winner and even resigned his post as Secretary of State just days ago. For months, various entities had called for Kemp to resign, seeing it as a conflict of interest for him to oversee his own gubernatorial campaign/election in his role as Secretary of State. Kemp resigned only after he felt confident that he won the gubernatorial election.
There are numerous allegations of voter suppression against Kemp, including the fact that he purged thousands of people from the voter rolls in the days and weeks leading up to the election because of a controversial “exact match” policy that prevents people from voting if the name on an ID and the name on the voting roll do not precisely match. That means a missing middle initial, for example, could get a voter kicked off the rolls. Also, 70% of those who were plucked off the voter rolls were Black. There were also reports of broken and outdated voting machines on election day.
Abrams has repeatedly said that she will not cease her campaign activities until every vote is counted. After meeting with voters who were frustrated with their election day experience, Abrams released the following statement:
“Make no mistake: Our democracy should work for all of us, regardless of political leanings, race, income, or region. Voting is a right, not a privilege. It is fundamental to our democracy and to our Georgia, and I will fight every single day until our government – a government of the people, by the people, and for the people – works for all of us.”
Abrams’ determination to get every vote counted is the same message she had on election night when she addressed an enthusiastic ballroom of supporters at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Atlanta. Friends, family, celebrities, college classmates, and everyday voters cheered on Abrams as she explained her vision and theGrio was there. Watch the video below to see how the Abrams campaign spent election night.