The Future of the Democratic Party May Rely on Stacey Abrams (No Pressure!)

By Dustin Rowles | Politics | July 25, 2018 |

By Dustin Rowles | Politics | July 25, 2018 |

Out in Georgia last night, a guy named Brian Kemp decisively won the Republican primary run-off after receiving the endorsement from Trump a few days ago. That endorsement basically clinched things for him, and it ultimately pits Kemp against Stacy Abrams, who challenged the establishment in her own Democratic party and won her primary. If she wins, she’d become the first black female governor in the history of the United States. As it is, she’s already the first black woman of a major party to be nominated for governor in any state, which is an insane notion in 2018, but then again, so is the fact that Sandra Oh became the first Asian woman to get an Emmy nomination in a lead category.

It’s also an interesting contest down in Georgia because it essentially pits a very progressive Democrat against a very Trumpian Republican, two candidates who shouldn’t have any problem shoring up their respective bases, but who will be battling for moderate voters in a state that still leans Republican but that has trended Democratic in recent years. Abrams, perhaps more than Ocasio-Cortez, represents the future of the Democratic party. In a moderately conservative state, she won her primary by basically rejecting the establishment strategy in Southern states: Nominate a white conservative and run toward the center. Abrams was like, “Fuck that, we’re going to stick with a progressive platform of economic fairness and we’re going to run to the left.”

Meanwhile, she’s running against this guy, who introduces himself, his shotgun, and his truck, which he says he will personally use to round up illegal aliens.

There’s also this ad, where he points his shotgun at the guy dating his daughter.

As someone from the South who has had a couple of Dads point guns at me, I gotta tell you, that ad was probably super popular with the good ole boys in Georgia. It’s probably going to be a very close, and very nasty race, and Abrams has an incredible challenge ahead of her: To turn a red state blue against the ultimate good ole boy, and nothing triggers me more than a fucking good ole boy — the mayor of my town growing up was a good ole boy (and a Democrat), and I spent a lot of time with his son, and the casual use of the N-word in that family still chills me — I just remember thinking, ‘My God! You’re the mayor. And this is how you talk with your family?’ I’m not saying that Brian Kemp casually uses the N-word in his family, but I’m not saying that because I don’t want to get sued, but also, I know the type. Very fucking well. Men that point guns at their daughter’s boyfriends is a brand down South.

ANYWAY, the election will be a huge test case for Democrats, too, because if we can win in a Red State with a progressive candidate like Stacey Abrams — or even come close — then that’s likely going to be the strategy going into 2020.

If Abrams gets beat handily … well, we’ll probably get Joe Biden in 2020.