The group plans to target Abrams, who narrowly lost to then-Secretary of State Kemp in the 2018 governor’s race and who has since led massive fundraising efforts for Democrats through Fair Fight and the New Georgia Project, groups that contributed to the party upsetting Republicans in the November 3 presidential election and two Senate runoff elections last month.
The group, which said its initial seed funding is in the six-figures, hopes to compete with Abrams’ large-scale cash flow. Over a two-year period, Fair Fight alone raised $90 million, per federal data, and funneled that money into grassroots organizations supporting Democrats in Georgia’s 2020 races.
Abrams launched Fair Fight after refusing to concede to Kemp in 2018 over claims of voter suppression; official results demonstrated a definitive but narrow loss to Kemp of 1.4 percent, or about 50,000 votes.
Stop Stacey noted in its announcement that the New Georgia Project has recently undergone investigation by Secretary of State Brad Raffensberger for allegedly encouraging nonresidents to vote. Raffensberger announced in December that in addition to other reports, the group had sent multiple postcards to his son who died two years ago and contended that the group was “promoting illegal voting.”
The investigation was one of hundreds the state has initiated related to the 2020 election after accusations of widespread voter fraud dominated news of the results. After two recounts, the red state officially turned blue for the first time since 1992, on a razor-thin margin of 0.2 percent, or about 12,000 votes, out of five million votes cast in the presidential race. FiveThirtyEight noted of the race that “it’s hard to dismiss Abrams’ role” in her mission to mobilize Democrat voters.
Stop Stacey promotes “Stop Stacey & Save America” messaging on its website StopStacey.org, similar to the “win Georgia, save America” campaigns of 2020. It notes that far-left Abrams is “radical” and that her get-out-the-vote efforts undermine election integrity, and the organization seeks to shed light on this through research, events, and ad campaigns.
“We will do whatever it takes to expose Stacey Abrams’ radical network, highlight her dangerous agenda, and ultimately defeat her – and her left-wing candidates – at the ballot box,” Brand said. “There is no time to waste: We must stand up, fight back, and Stop Stacey.”
Kemp told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution he plans to run for reelection, but Abrams has not yet confirmed her candidacy. One early poll found Kemp leading Abrams by four points in the battleground’s potential gubernatorial rematch.
