In Georgia, Kemp Claims Victory, But Won't Oversee Potential Recount

Updated at 3:36 p.m. ET

Republican Brian Kemp has declared victory over Democrat Stacey Abrams in Georgia's bitterly-fought gubernatorial race. But Abrams has not conceded and wants all provisional and absentee ballots counted first.

Kemp announced he would resign his post as secretary of state, effective at 11:59 a.m. Thursday after a lawsuit was filed calling it a conflict of interest for Kemp to oversee the vote count in a race he's involved in.

"We've won and now I've got to move on, but the process is true and has been for many, many years in Georgia. That's another reason we're going to have a new SOS that certifies elections to make that clear to Georgians that I understand that, so that they have confidence in the process," said Kemp.

The resignation comes months after Democrats first began to call on Kemp to step aside, arguing that he could not be the state's top election official and run for governor at the same time.

Kemp received just over 50 percent of the vote on Tuesday, and his campaign told reporters that their numbers show Abrams will not be able to beat him or trigger a recount.

"This election is over. The votes have been counted. There's a clear winner. Brian Kemp is the governor-elect in Georgia," Kemp adviser Austin Chambers declared in a conference call with reporters.

The Secretary of State's office on Thursday posted a county-by-county breakdown that shows thousands of provisional ballots in Abrams-friendly metro Atlanta.

The deadline is Friday for voters who cast provisional ballots to confirm their eligibility with county officials. The Abrams campaign says it has launched an "aggressive provisional ballot chase program," spending money on radio ads encouraging voters to call the Democratic Party's voter protection hotline.

The Abrams campaign says she will need 23,783 votes to get a recount in the race and points to 25,000 total outstanding ballots yet to be counted.

Her campaign manager Lauren Groh-Wargo says that by declaring victory, Kemp is abusing his power as secretary of state.

"If this is not a breach of public trust ... I don't know what the definition of that is," said Groh-Wargo.

The Abram's campaign also announced it is suing a south Georgia county over mail-in ballot delays due to Hurricane Michael. The campaign wants the deadline to receive mail-in ballots extended to Friday, Nov. 9.

Prominent Georgia Republicans like U.S. Sen. David Perdue were quick to offer their congratulations to Kemp.

Current Gov. Nathan Deal welcomed Kemp on Thursday morning at the Capitol, calling him "governor-elect."

County officials have until next Tuesday to certify their results. Statewide certification must come by Nov. 20.

The way Kemp used his office in the final days of the campaign created controversy.

On Sunday, the Secretary of State's office accused Georgia's Democratic Party of Georgia of trying to hack into the state's voter registration system without offering any evidence to back up the claim.

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