Georgia Democrats Organize Against Brian Kemp’s Extreme Gun Agenda With Stacey Abrams & Shannon Watts

Today, Georgia Democrats launched canvassing, phone banking, and other voter contact operations to engage and mobilize voters in support of Democratic candidates who will work to move Georgia in the right direction on gun safety and repeal Gov. Brian Kemp’s extreme and dangerous gun agenda.

Stacey Abrams, Shannon Watts, and Bob Christian, Democratic nominee for Georgia’s 6th Congressional District, spoke to organizers and volunteers before they launched into action and engaged with voters on the urgent need to push back against Georgia Republicans’ extreme gun policies that risk our public safety.

Download footage here, which features the full remarks from each speaker.

“We’ve got a governor who believes that in the face of gun violence, the answer is to weaken gun laws. On November 8th we will elect someone who proudly has an F from the NRA. We will elect someone who knows that we live in the South, look, we believe in the right to bear arms — but I know you can protect the Second Amendment and protect second graders at the exact same time,” said Stacey Abrams, Democratic nominee for Georgia Governor.

“Here in Georgia, under the guise of the Big Lie, we have seen the Republican Party consolidate their power with gerrymandered maps and a voter suppression law that is wreaking havoc across the state. As your representative, I will once again work every single day to ensure that we pass the John R Lewis Voting Rights Act to secure the fundamental right of every American to vote and use their voice. America is what we make it, or it’s what we let it become. So, please have a plan to vote — early voting starts on October 17,” said Bob Christian, Democratic nominee for Georgia’s 6th Congressional District.

“In five weeks from Tuesday, our safety is on the ballot, particularly in Georgia, where your governor, Brian Kemp, passed something called ‘criminal carry’ and signed it into law despite opposition from constituents and police. He signed it into law with the gun lobby standing next to him at a gun store. Kemp was completely silent when music festivals left the state because of those lax gun laws. And then he took $25,000 from a gun maker and refused to give it back even after the Uvalde mass shooting. Brian Kemp does not have your safety in mind — we have to show candidates when they do the right thing, we’ll have their back, when they do the wrong thing, we will have their jobs. The safety of your communities and your families is on the ballot,” said Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action.

Gov. Brian Kemp’s permitless carry law is opposed by 70% of Georgians and has drawn concerns from law enforcement officers and mayors across the state.

Kemp’s permitless carry law created a new loophole by eliminating part of the background check process which anyone wanting to carry a concealed firearm used to undergo. The change makes it easier for individuals with a criminal history who purchased a gun through a private sale – which is not subject to a background check – to carry a weapon in public.

Gun violence is now the leading cause of death for kids and teens in Georgia and states that have passed similar laws have seen increases in violent crime. Georgia already has the 17th highest rate of gun deaths in the nation and its rate of gun deaths increased 41% from 2011 to 2020. 

###