Stacey Abrams discussed the triumphant culmination of her long fight to flip Georgia, as well as what’s at stake in the crucial Senate runoffs there, during an interview with Stephen Colbert on The Late Show Monday, November 9th.
As Abrams recalled, her efforts began back in 2010 when, as the state’s Democratic leader, she set about building a voting infrastructure that focused on registration, recruiting and training staff, and ensuring the party was active in every county. While this kind of work can often fizzle out, Abrams said, by ensuring the party was constantly running candidates in every kind of race, they were able to create and sustain the momentum necessary for this year’s likely presidential victory (Georgia has yet to be officially called for president-elect Joe Biden, although he has a solid lead at the moment).
Abrams said she began to realize all her work was about to pay off Wednesday morning, November 4th, joking that she called her long-time work partner Lauren Groh-Wargo and said, “This is the first time I’ve woken up in a November without curling into the fetal position first.”
Abrams continued: “We really won. There is an orange menace of putrescence who will no longer be able to occupy the White House. That’s a big deal. There is an incoming president who has moral leadership and character, and who actually believes in science and facts. We have seen the change in the face of leadership by adding Kamala Harris, so women writ-large and women of color, in particular, can see themselves in the highest positions in the and. And, oh did I mention, Trump is leaving.”
In the second part of the interview, Abrams spoke about the January 5th Senate runoff races between Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff and Republicans Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, respectively. Abrams urged people to donate to Ossoff and Warnock’s campaigns and stressed the importance of the races, which will likely determine who holds a majority in the Senate.
“It’s about helping Georgia, but moreover it’s about saving democracy,” Abrams said. “Mitch McConnell is not a good leader, he is not a good man, and we cannot withstand four more years of blocking and of denying the needs of Americans. So giving to GASenate.com means that you’re going to help make certain we flip two seats at once because we like to be efficient in the South.”
