Stacey Abrams Promises She'll Be Back: "I Do Indeed Intend to Run for Office Again"
Just two days after ending her Georgia campaign to become the first black female governor in the United States, Stacey Abrams indicated that her political ambitions are far from over. The Democratic candidate said in an interview with CNN’s State Of The Union that although she wants to take a break following her highly contested gubernatorial race in Georgia, she still plans to run for office some day.
“I’m going to spend the next year as a private citizen, but I do indeed intend to run for office again,” Abrams said. “I’m not sure for what, and I am not exactly certain when. I need to take a nap, but once I do, I’m planning to get back into the ring.”
Following the midterm elections earlier this month, Abrams had refused to concede the nail-biter of a race to her opponent, Republican Brian Kemp, saying that she wanted to wait until every single vote had been counted. After an intensely publicized 10-day standoff, she finally recognized Kemp as governor-elect but used a fiery speech to call out voter suppression tactics and said she would be filing a federal lawsuit challenging the election’s “gross mismanagement.”
Abrams’ campaign had been embraced by many high-profile celebrities, including Michael B. Jordan, Uzo Aduba, Rashida Jones, and even Oprah, who helped rack up support by going door-to-door in Georgia—and fired back at a racist robocall that had targeted her and Abrams by urging voters to make their voices heard in the face of ugly political tactics.
“I acknowledge that former Secretary of State Brian Kemp will be certified as the victor in the 2018 gubernatorial election,” Abrams said Friday in a speech announcing the end of her bid. “But to watch an elected official who claims to represent the people in this state baldly pin his hopes for election on suppression of the people’s democratic right to vote has been truly appalling.”
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