Fueling 2020 rumors, Georgia's Stacey Abrams says no to Senate run
Former Georgia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams says she will not run for Senate next year despite numerous calls for her to seek public office once again. In a video released on social media Tuesday, Abrams said that she is "committed to doing everything I can do hep elect a Democrat to that seat next year."
I am grateful for all the encouragement I received to run for U.S. Senate, and I’m committed to doing everything I can to help elect a Democrat to that seat next year. #gapol pic.twitter.com/5o14BqgqwO
— Stacey Abrams (@staceyabrams) April 30, 2019
"I am so grateful for all of the support and encouragement I have received from fellow Georgians to leaders of congress and beyond. However, the fights to be waged require a deep commitment to the job, and I do not see the U.S Senate as the best role for me in this battle our nations future," said Abrams.
The Democrat, who narrowly lost her race for Georgia governor back in November, has been heavily courted by activists in the party to make a run for Senate or another bid for governor. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer recently told The Associated Press he was encouraging her to challenge Georgia Republican Sen. David Perdue in 2020.
DSCC Spokesman Stewart Boss said in a statement that "Stacey Abrams would have been a great Senator, and so will the candidate who takes on Senator Perdue next fall."
"Stacey and Georgia Democrats laid a strong foundation for 2020, and Senator Perdue will be held accountable for driving up health care costs, giving big corporations and millionaires like himself a tax break, and putting the president ahead of what's right. His weaknesses are why Georgia is a great pickup opportunity." added Boss.
While Abrams said in the video that she doesn't know exactly what's in store for her political future, she says that America is "under attack" and will continue to work to defeat acts of voter suppression in her home state and across the country.
The rising star in the Democratic party however, is not ruling out joining the already packed Democratic field of 2020 presidential contenders, telling "CBS This Morning" last month that her successes in "transforming the electorate" in her home state shows she'd be "just as capable of becoming the president of the United States as anyone running" right now.
Abrams has said that she previously considered 2028 to be the earliest she would run for president, but later tweeted she's now considering a 2020 run.
"[Twenty] years ago, I never thought I'd be ready to run for POTUS before 2028," she wrote. "But life comes at you fast ... Now 2020 is definitely on the table."
She told Politico that she's looking at a 2020 bid but will be taking some time to mull it over, with a decision likely in the fall. "My responsibility is to analyze it, decide if that's the job for me and how I can win," she said. "I believe based on my understanding of the contours of how to run a presidential race, September is actually an appropriate date."
Abrams also told CBS that she's been holding meetings with nearly everyone running in 2020, including former Vice President Joe Biden. She downplayed the possibility of joining Biden's ticket in the 2020 race.
"We talked about a lot of things but that was not the core issue," Abrams said when asked about filling a potential vice presidential slot.