Democrat Stacey Abrams is refusing to concede in the Georgia gubernatorial race, saying she still sees an avenue to advance to a runoff race with Republican Secretary of State Brian Kemp.
A group of voters, meanwhile, were waiting for a response to the federal lawsuit they filed in Atlanta that called on the court to bar Mr. Kemp from overseeing the election, saying his involvement “violates a basic notion of fairness — that as man should not be a judge in his own matter.”
On Wednesday, campaign manager Lauren Groh-Wargo told reporters in a conference call there were “significant irregularities” in the voting process and said there could be enough outstanding ballots to force Mr. Kemp into a runoff race.
“We are committed and remain committed to make sure that every vote is counted,” Ms. Groh-Wargo said, adding that it could take until Tuesday to know the final certified vote results from canvassers.
Under Georgia law, if no candidate wins more than 50 percent of the vote, then the top two vote-getters advance to a runoff election.
Ms. Groh-Wargo said Mrs. Abrams needs to cut into Mr. Kemp’s lead by fewer than 16,000 votes to force a runoff.
She reiterated the campaign concerns over whether Mr. Kemp should be presiding over the election, saying it raises serious conflict of interest questions that could have been avoided if he had heeded calls during the campaign — including from former President Jimmy Carter — to step down from his post.
“Overall, we feel the onus is on our campaign to fight for fairness,” Ms. Groh-Wargo said.
During the intense campaign, Ms. Abrams and her allies accused Mr. Kemp of using his office to disenfranchise voters — in particular minorities that would most likely support her campaign.
Similar concerns were aired out in the lawsuit filed late Tuesday in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia by five voters, saying his actions have violated the constitutional rights of Georgia voters and that he should be relieved of his duties regarding the governor’s race.
“Plaintiffs have a strong, well-founded, and reasonable belief that Kemp will not be a fair judge of the outcome of the election and will exercise this official duties in a biased manner that denies them the right to cast an effective vote,” the complaint reads. “The Court should not permit Defendant Kemp to resolve the outcome of the elections in which he is a candidate under these circumstances.”
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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