Political Rewind: What you need to know about Abrams’ run; Supreme Court discusses abortion access

Credit: Stephen Fowler, GPB News

Wednesday on Political Rewind: We discussed Stacey Abram’s announcement she is running for Georgia governor again. Meanwhile, the U.S. Supreme Court's continuing to hear arguments in a landmark abortion case. Also: a look at results from the state's runoff elections.  

The Panelists

Dr. Amy Steigerwalt — Professor of political science, Georgia State University 

Fred Smith — Professor of constitutional law, Emory University 

Dr. Tammy Greer — Political science professor, Clark Atlanta University 

Kevin Riley — Editor, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The Breakdown

1. Stacey Abrams announces second run for governor of Georgia. 

• She announced the run Wednesday afternoon on Twitter. If she wins, she would be the country’s first Black woman to hold the office of governor.

• Abrams is likely to again face current Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp in the general election. She ran against Kemp in 2018, losing her bid by 55,000 votes.  

• GPB's politics reporter Stephen Fowler has the latest on the Abrams announcement.

• Gov. Brian Kemp reacted quickly on Twitter to Abrams’ announcement, making several comments including, “With Stacey Abrams in control, Georgia would have shut down, students would have been barred from their classrooms, and woke politics would be the law of the land and the lesson plan in our schools.”  

• What remains unknown is if Kemp or Abrams will face off against any candidates within their own political parties. Currently, no one has emerged from the Democratic party to challenge Abrams. Gov. Kemp, on the other hand, could face an uphill battle in the Republican Party with resistance from former President Donald Trump. Kemp did not take steps to overturn the results of the 2020 election after Trump lost in the Peach State, creating friction between the two.  

• Here is what the 45th president said about Abrams and Kemp running for governor:

Caption

Statement by former President Donald Trump on Abrams' gubernatorial candidacy announcement

2. The U.S. Supreme Court continues hears abortion case challenging Roe v. Wade 

• The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing arguments in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. If the high court sides with Mississippi in the case, it will uphold a law barring abortion after 15 weeks. That is nine weeks fewer than the 24-week precedent established by Roe v. Wade in 1973. Georgia's abortion laws could be impacted by this ruling as well. 

• Currently, the court holds a 6 to 3 conservative majority. The justices will continue to review the case this week. Writing an opinion on the case is a process that could take months. 

• Meanwhile, Georgia’s abortion law is currently tied up in the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, which is waiting on the Supreme Court decision before issuing a ruling. The law is known as the Living Infants Fairness Equality Act. It would prevent abortions after six weeks, when a heartbeat is usually detected. 

3. Impact of the runoff elections 

• Democrats gained seven seats across Georgia in Tuesday's runoff elections.  

• LaRhonda Patrick made history in Warner Robins as the first Black woman elected city mayor.

4. Looking ahead to tomorrow on Political Rewind: The first case of the omicron variant has been found in the United States.  

• The World Health Organization named the omicron variant as a variant of concern last week. WHO says there is no evidence to suggest that symptoms linked to this variant are different from those caused by other variants. 

• It is not clear where the variant emerged from, but the omicron variant was found in the Netherlands before being reported in South Africa earlier last month. Samples of the variant have also been found in Hong Kong and Israel.  

• The San Francisco health department and California's state health department confirmed the U.S. case. The person traveled to South Africa and returned to the United States on Nov. 22. They tested positive Nov. 29 and are under self-quarantine.  

• As of Wednesday afternoon, the variant has not been found in Georgia.