Now that there is no longer speculation about whether Stacey Abrams will run for governor of Georgia, people are eagerly turning their attention to next year’s mid-term election with the expectation that she will emerge victorious from a rematch against Brian Kemp, the alleged voter suppressor to whom she narrowly lost in 2018.
Abrams on Wednesday announced her candidacy in a tweet accompanied by a moving video and seemed confident that she would reverse the previous election results after she arguably had the gubernatorial election stolen from her by Kemp, who at the time was a candidate overseeing all of the state’s elections while working in his official capacity of Georgia Secretary of State — a conflict of interest if there ever was one.
MORE: ‘Time To Get The Job Done’: Stacey Abrams Launches 2022 Campaign For Georgia Governor
“Now, it’s time to get the job done,” Abrams said on the video.
As a result, oddsmakers have given Abrams an early edge over Kemp if they face off against each other next November.
“Georgia is changing demographically, which is why we make Stacey Abrams 8-11 favorite to overturn her defeat to Brian Kemp from 2018. State elections are now dominated by the left-leaning Atlanta metro area, with Kemp requiring a massive groundswell of support from the rural Republican heartlands to stand a chance,” Chad Yeomans, a spokesperson for Betway — an online gambling company that sets betting odds on anything you can place a wager on, including political campaigns — told Newsweek.
Georgia gubernatorial candidates (L-R) Democrat Stacey Abrams and Republican Brian Kemp debate in an event that also included Libertarian Ted Metz at Georgia Public Broadcasting in Midtown October 23, 2018, in Atlanta, Georgia. | Source: Pool / Getty
Of course, it doesn’t take a gamblaholic to make such political predictions.
If history is any indication, whoever the Democratic nominee is will have as good a shot as anyone to beat Kemp, who has lost the support of Republican kingmaker Donald Trump, a factor that could mean he gets fewer votes than in 2018 when he barely edged Abrams.
In addition, the traditionally red state turned blue in the 2020 election — something due in no small part to Abrams’ work organizing on the ground — in a trend that could continue next year. In politics, momentum is everything.
As of Thursday, Trump had not formally endorsed any candidate in the race, delayed action in a high-stakes election that is tantamount to a rebuke of Kemp, which doesn’t bode well for his chances of succeeding in the primary, let alone a general election. Trump seemingly favors Vernon Jones, a former Democratic state representative in Georgia who last year defected from his party to become a rabid MAGA Trumpublican who just so happens to be Black.
The above combinations of factors — a Trump-endorsed right-wing candidate who is Black and not named Brian Kemp — could thwart Kemp’s re-election efforts and foil oddsmakers’ predictions. But it’s doubtful any of that can adversely affect Abrams’ campaign.
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Let’s Give Stacey Abrams Her Flowers Now
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp Attacks Stacey Abrams In First Re-Election Campaign
Oddsmakers Give Stacey Abrams Early Edge In Rematch Against Brian Kemp For Georgia Governor was originally published on newsone.com
