Stacey Abrams conceded Georgia’s governor race Tuesday night to incumbent Brian Kemp with a message for the people of Georgia: they deserve more.
“Our state has experienced one soul-crushing crisis after another over the past two years, but even during these trying times, the fighting spirit of Georgia has prevailed,” Abrams said as she addressed her supporters in the wake of her loss. “I got into this for a fight for what we know to be true, deep down in our bones, that the state of Georgia, the people of Georgia deserve more.”
Abrams has been a fierce challenger to Kemp after choosing to take on the incumbent candidate in a rematch of their 2018 race for governor, and has since advocated for low-income residents and people of color, as well as abortion access.
Despite the crises that have wrecked havoc on the southern state, Abrams praised the strong Georgian community that has made sacrifices and pitched in to help others.
“We’ve seen what’s possible when we stand up for our neighbors and protect each other,” she said. “It is in the spirit of that endurance and that persistence that I decided again to run for governor.”
“I got into this race for one reason and one reason only: to fight,” she continued. “And not just any fight, a fight to save Georgia, a fight on behalf of our children and generations to come, a fight on behalf of our people, whether they know it or not. A fight for basic human rights that we should take for granted but we have to struggle to hold on to, and a fight for the values that we hold dear and we may never sacrifice.”
This election cycle, Republicans have made a mockery of Abram’s 2018 concession speech, a moment in which the former Democratic candidate said she would not concede “because the erosion of our democracy is not right.”