Abrams addresses ‘pending’ voter registration status for thousands of registrants

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Georgia’s Democratic Nominee for Governor, Stacey Abrams, made a stop in Macon on Monday. She spoke to voters at Ebenezer Baptist Church in downtown.

Community members and county leaders alike came out to show their support. Abrams addressed supporters on the first day of early voting with one major message–get to the polls.

“I need our voices to be lifted up. We have 53,000 people that have been told “maybe” their voices will count,” said Abrams during her speech Monday morning.

For many she’s a symbol of hope, now working against what she believes are voter suppression tactics.

“While we fight for the 53,000 I need the 1.9 million to show up and show out and show Georgia who we are,” she told voters who attended.

Democratic Nominee Stacey Abrams has been making her way up and down the state, attracting voters like Cathi Davis who lives in rural Emmanuel County.

“As a small business owner, I’m looking at someone like Stacey Abrams and her pension for speaking to small business owners and women and parents she hits everyone of my buttons,” said Davis.

Now she’s just trying to let people know they can vote whether they’re ‘pending’ or not in the Secretary of State’s office.

“They can go to the polls. The challenge is whether they understand that and more importantly whether the 159 counties consider their ID’s to be compliant,” Abrams told 41NBC.

On Monday, Abrams addressed her future plans for the state–pledging to fully fund Georgia’s public education system.

“You can’t say you believe in our teachers when you will not stand up for them and guarantee not only their salaries but their retirement. I’m the only candidate who actually has a plan for creating 56,000 new jobs in Georgia by expanding Medicaid, creating 25,000 to 45,000 thousand jobs in Georgia by investing in advanced energy and renewable energy, creating a $10 million small business financing fund,” she said.

She says another priority is helping parts of Georgia rebuild that were severely impacted by Hurricane Michael.

“We have to have a governor who is not just the Governor of Atlanta or North Georgia or the big cities but the Governor of all of Georgia, all 159 counties. I’m proud to say I’ve been to every single county in Georgia,” she said.

Though Georgia has long been a republican state, she told people in the crowd victory isn’t a long shot.

“I look around and I see all the different kind of people who come to her rallies you know white, black, brown, purple, you know they speak English, or they don’t–and she does something for every one of us,” Davis explained.

Abrams says all she needs for victory are votes. Despite pending status in the secretary of state’s office for new registrants, anyone who registers to vote before the deadline on October 9th can come in to cast their vote and be counted.

The last day of early voting is November 2nd and it’s also the last chance to request an absentee ballot.