Stacey Abrams says 2020 presidential bid is "definitely on the table"
Stacey Abrams, the Democratic candidate who narrowly lost her race for Georgia governor in 2018, said she isn't ruling out a run for president in 2020.
Speaking at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival Monday, Abrams said she had 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."
In #LeadFromTheOutside, I explore how to be intentional about plans, but flexible enough to adapt. 20 years ago, I never thought I’d be ready to run for POTUS before 2028. But life comes at you fast - as I shared in Q&A w @Yamiche at @sxsw. Now 2020 is definitely on the table...
— Stacey Abrams (@staceyabrams) March 11, 2019
Her former campaign manager Lauren Groh-Wargo also tweeted Abrams' comment about not running before 2028 was a reference to a "years-old spreadsheet" Abrams uses to keep track of her career goals.
"She is taking a look at all options on the table in 2020 and beyond," Groh-Wargo wrote.
A rising star in Democratic politics, Abrams has been courted by Democratic activists to run for Senate or make another bid for governor since being narrowly defeated by Republican Brian Kemp in the November midterm elections. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer recently told The Associated Press he was encouraging her to challenge Georgia's incumbent senator in 2020.
"There's no one who knows how to fight for voting rights better than Stacey Abrams," Schumer said. "If she got to the Senate, she'd have a huge platform to do it, not just in Georgia, but nationally."
If she chose to run, she would be joining the most diverse field of Democratic presidential hopefuls in history. She would be the third African-American candidate, joining Sens. Kamala Harris and Cory Booker. She would also be the fifth woman to jump in the race: Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard and Harris have all thrown their hats in the ring.
Abrams was tapped to deliver the Democratic rebuttal to President Trump's State of the Union address in February, using the national spotlight to highlight her working-class roots and commitment to protecting voting rights.