President Trump is tweeting his support for Republican candidate for Georgia governor, Brian Kemp, while calling Democratic candidate Stacey Abrams “totally unqualified.”
Kemp and Abrams are locked in a tight battle for governor. A recent 11Alive poll shows Kemp has a 2-point lead over Abrams, but African-American turnout could easily propel her into Statehouse.
On Saturday, Trump tweeted: “Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp will be a great governor. He has been successful at whatever he has done, and has prepared for this very difficult and complex job for many years. He has my Strong Endorsement. His opponent is totally unqualified. Would destroy a great state!”
He also tweeted that Kemp is “tough on crime” and strong on “the border and illegal immigration.”
As of Sunday, Oct. 21, over 521,000 people have cast their ballot in early voting across Georgia, with over 433,000 ballots cast in-person and over 88,000 by mail. Fulton has seen the highest turnout with 74,233 ballots cast.
Voters in Cobb County have experienced wait times of up to 3 hours. Many counties have opened new polling centers to help with the huge early voter turnout.
A win for Abrams would make her the first black female governor in U.S. history. Kemp is Georgia's Secretary of State. The race has become heated in recent days amid claims that Kemp's office is trying to suppress voter turnout of women and minorities by holding up 53,000 voter applications. Kemp denies the claims, calling it a "publicity stunt." The last time Georgia elected a Democrat for governor was 20 years ago.
Former President Barack Obama endorsed Abrams for governor in August.
