Georgia WIN List endorses former Minority Leader Stacey Abrams for Governor in 2022 as the leader Georgia needs to move the state forward while we continue to recover from the worldwide COVID pandemic and two decades of Republican control which has under-funded education and the social services safety net some Georgians count on. 

“Stacey Abrams’ historic 2018 campaign came close to a win. Following the COVID pandemic, her plan to expand Medicaid to half a million Georgians not currently covered is particularly relevant. Her message about bringing Georgians together will resonate in these divisive times,” said WIN List board chair Laura Register, who noted 1.3 million voters have been added to the rolls since 2018.

“Leader Abrams is a charismatic national figure who can create the ‘One Georgia’ she promises,” Register said. “She is the leader Georgia needs now to correct Republican created problems such as the underfunding of education. Her visionary leadership will bridge divides and create the opportunity for all our citizens to prosper and thrive.”

Of the top ten most populous states in the nation, Georgia is one of five which has never had a woman as governor. If elected, Leader Abrams would become the first Black woman governor in the nation’s history. At present, Georgia boasts the highest number and percentage of Black women legislators in the nation. Leader Abrams served on the Georgia WIN List board before she first ran for the state House with a WIN List endorsement in 2007. See a chart of states who have elected women governors here.

“We look forward to having Leader Abrams at the top of the Democratic ticket in 2022 and know the efforts of her grassroots campaign will boost the entire ticket,” Ms. Register said. “We also look forward to continuing our work to recruit and elect more well-qualified women to serve in the Georgia General Assembly. Electing more women will give Governor Abrams a legislature more likely to approve the forward-thinking agenda she is establishing for Georgia.”

“I’ve never stopped fighting for Georgia. I’ve never lost faith that – together – we can build a brighter future for all of us,” Leader Abrams says.  “Together, we can keep more money in families’ pockets, help our communities prosper, and give our children the greatest opportunities to thrive. I’m running for governor because opportunity and success in Georgia shouldn’t be determined by your zip code, background or access to power.”

Stacey Abrams and her five siblings grew up in Gulfport, Mississippi with three tenets: go to school, go to church and take care of each other. Despite struggling to make ends meet for their family, her parents made service a way of life for their children; if someone was less fortunate, it was their job to serve that person. This ethic – and her parents’ unwavering commitment to providing educational opportunities for their children – led the family to Georgia.

Her parents attended Emory University to pursue graduate studies in Divinity and become United Methodist ministers. Stacey and her younger siblings attended DeKalb County Schools, and she graduated from Avondale High School. Stacey received degrees from Spelman College, the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas and Yale Law School.

She put her education to work to better the lives of Georgians through the government, nonprofit and business sectors. Dedicated to civic engagement, she founded the New Georgia Project, which registered more than 200,000 voters of color between 2014 and 2016. As co-founder of NOW Account – a financial services firm which helps small businesses grow – Stacey has helped create and retain jobs in Georgia. And through her various business ventures, Stacey has helped employ even more Georgians, including hundreds of young people beginning  their careers.

In 2011, Ms. Abrams became the first woman to lead either party in the Georgia General Assembly and the first African American to lead in the House of Representatives. As House Minority Leader, she worked strategically to recruit, train, elect and defend Democrats to prevent a Republican supermajority in the House. She worked across the aisle on behalf of all Georgians. During her tenure, she stopped legislation to raise taxes on the poor and middle class and blocked legislation to roll back reproductive healthcare. She brokered compromises which led to progress on transportation, infrastructure and education. She also passed legislation to improve the welfare of grandparents and other kin raising children and secured increased funding to support these families.

Leader Abrams worked hard to harness the extraordinary opportunities available to our state. She understands if Georgians have the vision to strive – and the courage to confront our challenges – potential for our state is boundless. She has traveled to each of Georgia’s 159 counties.

Stacey has received the Friend of Labor award for her staunch support of working families and an A-rating from the Georgia Chamber of Commerce. She is the 2012 Grand Champion of the Georgia National Fair Legislative Livestock Roundup and the Grand Marshal of the 2019 Atlanta Pride Festival & Parade. Stacey has received recognition from the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Asian Americans Advancing Justice (Georgia), the National Urban League, EMILY’s List and Planned Parenthood. She was honored by Georgia WIN List as a Georgia Stateswoman in 2015 and received the first ever EMILY’s List Gabrielle Giffords Rising Star Award in 2014.

Energized by her mission to build a stronger, better Georgia, Stacey ran for Governor in 2018 as the first Black woman gubernatorial nominee from a major party. She won more votes than any other Democrat in the state’s history at the time. Having witnessed the gross mismanagement of the 2018 election by the Secretary of State’s office firsthand, Stacey founded Fair Fight Action, the nation’s primary organization promoting free and fair elections through litigation, legislation and advocacy. In 2019, she launched Fair Count—an organization dedicated to increasing participation in the 2020 Census in order to achieve a fair and accurate count of all Georgians, and strengthening pathways to greater civic participation. During the pandemic, Stacey eliminated the medical debt of 68,000 Georgians, delivered much needed supplies to Georgia food banks, expanded access to vaccines, advocated full Medicaid expansion and helped Georgia small businesses struggling to stay afloat.

To reach the campaign:

• Website