Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp once again faced off against Democratic challenger Stacey Abrams.
The 2018 election between Kemp and Abrams gained national attention with former President Barack Obama and Oprah Winfrey rallying behind Abrams as she strove to overtake Kemp.
CNN called the race for Kemp, followed by the Associated Press. Abrams conceded to Kemp, as he garnered a more than a 300,000-vote advantage with 75% of precincts accounted for, per Politico.
In 2018, Abrams lost by a slim margin and alleged “gross mismanagement” of the election. The Associated Press reports that while she acknowledged her defeat, she refused to call it a concession.
“Let’s be clear: This is not a speech of concession,” Abrams said. “Because concession means to acknowledge an action is right, true or proper. As a woman of conscience and faith, I cannot concede that.”
Of the race, Trump praised both parties, tweeting: “Congratulations to Brian Kemp on becoming the new Governor of Georgia. Stacey Abrams fought brilliantly and hard — she will have a terrific political future! Brian was unrelenting and will become a great Governor for the truly Wonderful People of Georgia!”
But Kemp’s good standing with Trump was retracted when the governor refused to participate in the former president's efforts to overturn the 2020 election, according to Politico.
Trump helped promote U.S. Sen. David Perdue to challenge Kemp in the primaries, though Perdue lost by a large margin.
Now, the Georgia governor’s race turns heated again. In a debate, Abrams said “the most dangerous thing facing Georgia is four more years of Brian Kemp,” per The Associated Press. Kemp focused his messaging on income and property tax breaks as he blamed the Biden administration for rampant inflation and high fuel prices.