In Georgia, Kemp and Abrams underscore why governors matter
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Republican Gov. Brian Kemp speaks to supporters at a campaign stop in Marietta, Ga., on Nov. 3. Kemp emphasized how he kept businesses open during the pandemic despite criticism from Democrats and health experts. "Who was fighting for you then when the political winds were blowing a different way?" he said.Riley Bunch/GPB -
Kemp signs a flier in Marietta, Ga., on Nov. 3. He urged supporters to ignore the polls showing him ahead of Democrat Stacey Abrams. "I don't want you to believe any polls," he said. "Look, the national media is already writing stories about this and about that. Let me tell you what they're doing: they are trying to lull us to sleep. Don't buy into that. Keep working like we're five points down."Riley Bunch/GPB -
A crowd of more than a hundred supporters cheers as Kemp steps off his campaign bus in Cumming, Ga., on Nov. 1 just ahead of a rally featuring former Vice President Mike Pence.Riley Bunch/GPB -
Kemp smiles as Pence touts the governor's leadership during a rally in Cumming, Ga., on Nov. 1. "I'm here because Brian Kemp is singularly one of the most successful conservative governors in the United States of America," Pence told the crowd. "I'm here because Stacey Abrams can never be governor of the great state of Georgia."Riley Bunch/GPB -
Kemp supporters snap selfies as the governor joins Pence onstage at a campaign rally in Cumming, Ga. on Nov. 1.Riley Bunch/GPB -
Pence joins Kemp for a second rally this campaign cycle. The Republican incumbent has successfully avoided any interference from former President Donald Trump on the campaign trail while he woos conservative voters.Riley Bunch/GPB -
Abrams at a rally in Marietta, Ga., on Nov. 1. She has argued Georgia's $6.6 billion surplus should be used to bolster state services like affordable housing programs, schools and health care. "We need a governor who knows that it's not enough to say you know there's a problem," she said. "We've got to have a governor willing to invest in the answer."Riley Bunch/GPB -
Abrams stands with protestors outside of the closed Wellstar Atlanta Medical Center on Nov. 1. Since 2018, Abrams has advocated for full Medicaid expansion and argued it would have saved many of Georgia's closing hospitals. "We are steps away from M.L.K.'s home and yet we are watching this community lose health care in real time," she said.Riley Bunch/GPB -
In front of a crowd of supporters in Marietta, Ga., and flanked by U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, Abrams emphasizes abortion restrictions by her opponent. After the Supreme Court decided to overturn Roe v. Wade, Georgia's strict abortion ban passed in 2019 went into effect. "When Brian Kemp tells you who he is, believe him," she said Nov. 1.Riley Bunch/GPB -
In the final stretch to Election Day, Georgia Democrats called in high-profile surrogates. Former President Barack Obama stumped for Abrams and U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock in College Park, Ga. on Oct. 28. "There may be a lot of issues at stake in this election," he said. "But the basic question, fundamental question that you should be asking yourself right now is, who will fight for you?"Riley Bunch/GPB -
Supporters of Abrams and Warnock dance in the stands of The Gateway Center in College Park, Ga., ahead of remarks by Obama on Oct. 28.Riley Bunch/GPB -
Abrams and Warnock greet supporters during a rally in College Park, Ga. on Oct. 28. "Over the course of this campaign, I have had the honor of reaching out to voters across Georgia – listening to their voices and their dreams" Abrams said. "Because regardless of where we live, we share a common belief: that Georgia can do more, can be more, for all of us."Riley Bunch/GPB
ATLANTA – When Georgia's Republican governor, Brian Kemp, took office fresh off a tight victory over Democrat Stacey Abrams in 2018, he pledged to invest in infrastructure, curb crime and improve schools.
"When I gave my inaugural address, I said, 'I'm going to work hard for every Georgian, whether you voted for me or not,' " he recently reminded a crowd of supporters as he seeks a second term this year. "And that's exactly what I've been doing."
But beyond those perennial topics like public safety and education, the country's governors have also been tested by events that would have been hard to anticipate just a few years ago, like the demise of Roe v. Wade, a global pandemic and a tumultuous 2020 election.
For many Americans, the upheaval has brought the power of their governors into sharper relief, as decisions about abortion, the pandemic and voting fall to the states, more than Washington D.C.
On the campaign trail, Kemp doesn't talk much about the fallout from the 2020 election, nor last year's overhaul of Georgia's voting laws that Democrats have roundly criticized.
But he does refer back to 2020 in other ways, often launching into his stump speech by recounting his decision to reopen schools and businesses early in the pandemic, when most governors did not.
"We're the incubators of democracy," Kemp said in an interview. "A lot of the things that you've seen that are good for our states end up maybe being good national policy or are better done at the state level than the national level. And I think covid only exacerbated that."
Like other Democrats running for governor around the country, Abrams has made abortion rights a centerpiece of the campaign. As governor, Kemp signed a law banning most abortions after about six weeks.
"Governors have the greatest amount of power that people rarely understand," Abrams said in an interview. "But because of the U.S. Supreme Court stripping women of their right to choose, because of the weakening of the Voting Rights Act, more and more of the power to make decisions is being relegated to the states."
Still, an issue that may help decide tight races in Georgia and other states is mostly out of governors' hands – inflation. Kemp and other Republicans have tied rising costs for everyday expenses like groceries and gas to Democrats' control in Washington.
While governors can't reverse inflation on their own, both candidates have outlined ways the state can help relieve voters' economic pain. For example, Kemp has kept the state's gas tax suspended for months now. Abrams has redoubled her pledge to expand Medicaid.
In recent months, Kemp has led Abrams in most polls by several points.
But as the two candidates top midterm ballots in Georgia for a second time, they have laid out very different visions for the state – on everything from economic development and the state budget to healthcare, voting and public safety – at a time when Georgia's demographics and politics are in flux.
So the outcome of Georgia's gubernatorial race is likely to both shape the everyday lives of voters – and the trajectory of their state.
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Transcript
JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
It used to be that campaigns for Senate and Congress absorbed most of the spotlight. But recently, the power of governors has come into sharper relief as decisions about voting, the pandemic and abortion have fallen to the states more than Washington, D.C. WABE's Sam Gringlas takes us along for one day of the campaign for governor in Georgia, where Republican Governor Brian Kemp and Democrat Stacey Abrams are competing for a second time.
SAM GRINGLAS, BYLINE: The morning after Halloween, Brian Kemp bounds off his red-and-black campaign bus and weaves through a crowd of supporters gathered in a leafy suburban park.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
BRIAN KEMP: Say, how's it going?
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Good, governor. Nice to see you.
GRINGLAS: With four years under his belt, Kemp has been running on his record.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
KEMP: When I gave my inaugural address, I said, I'm going to work hard for every Georgian, and that's exactly what I've been doing.
GRINGLAS: But America's governors have also been tested by events that would have been hard to anticipate just a few years ago, like the overturning of Roe v. Wade, a global pandemic, the aftermath of the 2020 election and inflation.
ANN AUSTIN: My everyday life is at the pump, so I'm concerned about inflation.
GRINGLAS: Ann Austin, who's wearing a pink jacket and waving two small American flags, says Kemp has impressed her on all fronts, especially his refusal to help then-President Trump undermine the 2020 election results.
AUSTIN: He's a man of integrity. He stood against a lot of political pressure on his side.
GRINGLAS: On the trail, Kemp doesn't talk much about the fallout from the last election or the new Republican-backed voting law Democrats have roundly criticized. But he returns often to his decision to reopen schools and businesses early in the pandemic.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
KEMP: We're the incubators of democracy. A lot of the things that you've seen that are good for our state end up maybe being good national policy or they're better done at the state level than the national level. And I think COVID only exacerbated that.
GRINGLAS: About 30 miles away, Stacey Abrams' blue campaign bus is idling in a strip mall parking lot. Volunteers are grabbing clipboards to knock doors as they wait for Abrams to speak.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: How you doing?
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: Good.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Looking to canvass?
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: Yeah.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: OK. Where would you like to go?
GRINGLAS: One volunteer is Shirley Connor.
SHIRLEY CONNOR: I'm 66 years young and able to participate in putting Georgia on a brand-new course.
GRINGLAS: Connor emerged from the pandemic with strong feelings about the governor's approach.
CONNOR: I lost six family members - my father, my mother, both of my sisters. When it came time to wear a mask, there was this big upheaval. But these are the same people that want to tell you that you have to have an unwanted pregnancy.
GRINGLAS: Kemp signed a law banning most abortions after about six weeks. It's something Abrams highlights at every rally.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
STACEY ABRAMS: It took a man to break the promise of Georgia. It's going to take a woman to put it right.
(CHEERING)
GRINGLAS: On board her tidy bus, I asked Abrams how she sees the role of governors in this moment.
ABRAMS: Governors have the greatest amount of power that people rarely understand. But because of the U.S. Supreme Court stripping women of their right to choose, because of the weakening of the Voting Rights Act, more and more of the power to make decisions is being relegated to the states.
GRINGLAS: Abrams' voice is starting to wear down.
ABRAMS: There's the whole phrase, no sleep till Brooklyn, but - you know, I'm not going to quote the Beastie Boys. But if my voice has to give out a little bit, then that is more than a price I'm willing to pay.
GRINGLAS: This is one thing the two candidates might actually agree on.
KEMP: We're not worried about being rested or well fed. We're just worried about getting the vote out.
GRINGLAS: At Curt's Restaurant in the Atlanta exurbs, Kemp's favorite entree is the fried chicken. But on this day, he doesn't get to sit for a meal. He's got voters to talk to.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
KEMP: So our focus over the last six months has been helping you all and other hard-working Georgians fight through this 40-year high inflation.
GRINGLAS: Eighty-year-old Winston Pittman is pushing his tray along the cafeteria line.
WINSTON PITTMAN: There's wonderful meatloaf here. It's almost like my mother used to make.
GRINGLAS: Pittman is retired law enforcement.
PITTMAN: He can talk to us and make us understand what he's saying. And, God, I just want him to win so bad.
GRINGLAS: Polls show Kent leading Abrams despite a majority of voters agreeing with her on issues like guns and abortion. As the two candidates top midterm ballots in Georgia for a second time, they've laid out very different visions for the state on everything from the budget to health care and public safety at a time when Georgia's politics and demographics are in flux.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
KEMP: When you think at what's at stake in this country, do you want those same policies that are in Washington, D.C., in Georgia? 'Cause that's what Stacey Abrams would bring.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
ABRAMS: This is not just about our economy. It's about our rights. See, we live in a state where we have fewer freedoms today than I did when I was a 19-year-old on Spelman's campus.
GRINGLAS: As night falls, Abrams arrives at a new brewery in the suburbs for one more rally. She ticks through her platform on affordable housing and Medicaid expansion and then, when it's over, organizes the day's final photo line.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
ABRAMS: Anybody in here want a picture?
(CHEERING)
ABRAMS: OK. We're going to line up outside by the bus.
GRINGLAS: Just a few more photos and a few more days to go before results come in.
For NPR News, I'm Sam Gringlas in Marietta, Ga. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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