Stacey Abrams, Brian Kemp To Face Off In Debate Tonight, 3 Things To Know
Incumbent Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams are facing off in their first and only debate tonight. Here are three things to know.
Polls
For the majority of the race, Kemp has been ahead of Abrams in the polls. According to the most recent poll from Insider Advantage, Kemp leads Abrams by 10 points. In a poll conducted by the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Black voters are favoring Abrams at 83% to just 9% for Kemp and Abrams has nearly 80% of the Black vote, with 75% of Black men supporting her. The key factor for Abrams will be Black voter turnout. In November 2020, with the Black voting electorate at 33%, Black voter turnout reached 27.8% and elected Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff. During the Jan. 2021, run-off election, which elected Senator Raphael Warnock, Black voter turnout was at 30.9%. Despite the polls, if Black voters show up at higher numbers than 2020 (white voter turnout in 2020 was above 55%), Abrams could be victorious.
Issues
Expect voting rights, abortion and the economy to be some of the key issues discussed at the debate. Abrams wants to expand Medicaid, address the rates of incarceration that disproportionately affect Black Georgians, and to reduce the “one hundred-year financial gap” that exists between white and Black-owned businesses. She also believes in a woman’s right to choose. However, Kemp supports Georgia’s heartbeat bill, a ban on abortion when a fetal heartbeat can be detected, which can be as early as six weeks into a pregnancy when many women don't yet know they're pregnant.
As for voter rights, Kemp denies there is a voter suppression issue in the state. Last year, he signed Senate Bill 202 earlier this year, which gave state Republicans power over choosing members of county-level election boards. The U.S. Department of Justice sued Georgia in June 2021 “to stop racially discriminatory provisions” of the law from going into effect. The lawsuit is still ongoing but expect the bill to be addressed during tonight’s debate.
Cost of the Race
According to USA Today, since July, Abrams has raised a total of $85 million with Kemo raising $60 million. In the nation’s most watched governor’s race, they have both spent heavily. In early October, Kemp had $15.4 million with Abrams at over $11 million.
The debate airs live at 7 p.m. EST, and will be hosted by the Press Club wilwatch on GPB.org and The Atlanta Press Club Facebook page.
