AAPI Victory Fund Endorses Georgia Gubernatorial Candidate Stacey Abrams
WASHINGTON — Today, AAPI Victory Fund announced their latest endorsement for the 2022 election cycle: Stacey Abrams for Governor of Georgia. Abrams is a lawyer, author, and voting rights activist who served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 2007 to 2017 and as the minority leader from 2011 to 2017. As Governor, Abrams will continue to serve as a trailblazing leader and champion, fighting for the people of Georgia and for democracy.
After the grossly mismanaged 2018 Georgia election where Stacey Abrams was the first Black woman gubernatorial nominee for a major party in the United States, Abrams founded Fair Fight Action, a voting rights organization to address voter suppression in her home state of Georgia. Abrams has led the exemplary charge to mobilize millions of voters across Georgia to turn the great Peach State blue.
As the fastest growing racial or ethnic group in the U.S., AANHPIs makeup 4.7% of Georgia's electorate, a figure that shows a 53% increase in AANHPI turnout since the 2010 election. With the narrow 2020 presidential election margin of just 11,779 votes in Georgia, it is clear that the surging AANHPI electorate is becoming a crucial election-determining community in Georgia. In tandem with Abram’s persistent voter mobilization efforts with Fair Fight Action in coalition with AAPI-led organizations in-state and the record-breaking turnout of the AANHPI electorate, Democrats won historic victories during the election of President Joe Biden in 2020 and the runoff Senate elections of Senators Jon Ossof and Raphael Warnock in 2021.
AAPI Victory Fund President and CEO Brad Jenkins issued the following statement:
“I am honored to lead the AAPI Victory Fund in announcing our endorsement of Stacey Abrams for Governor of Georgia. Over the course of her career, Abrams has shown an unwavering commitment to the people of Georgia and continues to be a relentless changemaker, fighting for a just and equitable future where everyone has access to a safe community and inclusive democracy.”
“At a time when violence against the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander community continues to escalate, when Americans feel that democracy is under attack, and as women in the U.S. lose their fundamental right to access to abortion and reproductive healthcare, the historic opportunity to elect America’s first African American woman governor could not be higher stake.
We are proud to endorse such an accomplished leader who understands the pain of the people of Georgia and has real plans to fight for each Georgian. Stacey Abrams embodies the urgency of this moment, and we look forward to seeing all she will accomplish in her tireless dedication to the people of Georgia as their next governor.
AAPI Victory Fund National Political Director Shehn Datta issued the following statement:
“Stacey Abrams is ready to continue serving the state of Georgia - running for the crucial Georgia governorship. Georgia’s AANHPI community is in a unique position – as the fastest growing sector of the electorate, our election-determining community has the ability to help elect Georgia’s first woman governor, Georgia’s first person of color governor, and the nation’s first Black woman governor. Women – and especially women of color – remain underrepresented in critical executive leadership positions, and our Georgia community can help change that.”
“At AAPI Victory Fund, we are extremely proud to break the cycle of malicious underrepresentation and endorse Stacey Abrams for her historic gubernatorial race in Georgia this November. The great people of Georgia deserve an unflappable leader, committed to creating a stronger Georgia that works for everyone.”
Georgia Gubernatorial Candidate Stacey Abrams issued the following statement:
“I am honored to receive the endorsement of the AAPI Victory Fund. Georgia's diverse AAPI community deserves leadership that sees them, represents them and is committed to ensuring they have access to safety, justice and opportunity. This year, we have a generational opportunity to shape the future of Georgia and ensure all communities have access to affordable healthcare, an economy that works for everyone and education that supports our children from cradle to career. AAPI voters were critical to Democratic victories in 2020 and 2021 and together, in 2022, we can make history again and ensure all Georgians have the opportunity to thrive — no matter their background or zip code."
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The AAPI Victory Fund is focused on mobilizing Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) eligible voters and moving them to the ballot box.