Republican nominee for Georgia governor Brian Kemp has mischaracterized his opponent’s position in saying that Democrat Stacey Abrams wants immigrants without legal status to cast ballots for her in the Nov. 6 election.
Kemp’s claim: “Ms. Abrams, as you know, in a recent video you called on illegals to vote for you in this election. I was actually shocked; I had to watch that video twice. It clearly shows that you were asking for ‘undocumented and documented’ folks to be part of your winning strategy. So my question is why are you encouraging people to break the law for you in this election?”
The Facts: Kemp’s claim is inaccurate. While it’s is true that Abrams’ described “those who are documented and undocumented” as part of the “blue wave” earlier this month, in the context of her full remarks it’s a mischaracterization to say she asked people to break the law to cast ballots for her.
Kemp points to an Oct. 9 campaign speech Abrams gave in Jonesboro, Ga., to support his claim.
During the event, Abrams said: “But the thing of it is, the blue wave is African-American. It’s white, it’s Latino, it’s Asian-Pacific Islander. It is disabled. It is differently-abled. It is LGBTQ. It is law enforcement. It is veterans. It is made up of those who have been told they are not worthy of being here. It is comprised of those who are documented and undocumented. It is comprised of those who have been told they’re successful and those who have been left behind. But the real wave is when we come together and we tell Georgia: we’re here and we’re not going anywhere.”
