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By BILL BARROW, Associated Press
ATLANTA (AP) – His election still undecided, Republican Brian Kemp is proceeding as a victorious candidate and promising to be a governor for all Georgians. That might not be so easy.
Should he narrow lead hold over Democrat Stacey Abrams and ultimately send him to the governor's mansion, Kemp would be face lingering questions about how and why he oversaw his own election as secretary of state. Its victory would be fueled by an even starker than usual urban-rural divide, with Abrams drawing most of its votes in metro Atlanta and smaller cities, and Kemp running up massive margins in rural and small-town Georgia.
Then there's his embrace of President Donald Trump's coarse rhetoric, from Kemp "about" illegal votes "to his" round up "crime in his own pickup truck.
That all plays into what civil rights leaders and observers are describing as a race, race-laden contest that pitted Abrams' bid to become the nation's first black woman governor against Kemp's fierce effort to preserve its overwhelmingly white party's hold on a growing, diversifying Deep South state.
"In the hypothetical scenario that Brian Kemp becomes governor," said NAACP activist and congressional candidate Francys Johnson, "then he and Donald Trump will both be able to stand up to deepest darkest fears among their base."
Some Republicans acknowledge the atmosphere even if they defend Kemp from charges he racially and culturally divisive campaign. "Brian Kemp can not extricate himself from the national political environment," said Brian Robinson, to form adviser to outgoing Gov. Nathan Deal. "You run for coroner, you have to say that you want to make America great again."
Kemp has pledged to "put Georgians first" – a rhetorical cousin to Trump's "America First." He rejects any notion he could take care of a cloud that would make his job harder.
"It was a tough election," Kemp said as he stood in the governor's office after the Nov. 6 election, resigning as secretary of state to focus on a January transfer of power. He cited a "clear and convincing" election – returned 50.3 percent at the time: "I'm going to serve and move forward with the plans we have."
Undeterred, Abrams' campaign filed a federal lawsuit Sunday. If successful, it would be possible to vote at least 100 percent of the votes that were not counted. The ballot could be affected.
"Count every vote!" A small group of protesters recently chanted, distrustful after years of struggles between voting and voting rights.
Kemp says he's faithfully enforced state and federal elections.
Aim Nina Durham, a 50-year-old Powder Springs resident said she did not have confidence in the results. Asked if she could see Kemp as the governor, Durham, who is African-American, replied, "No. He has not represented me as secretary of state."
Unofficial returns show Kemp by 60,000 votes out of more than 3.9 million cast votes. That 's enough for a narrow majority. That would trigger a Dec. 4 runoff.
The Associated Press has not called the race. The AP will revisit its decision after Tuesday's deadline for Georgia's 159 counties to send certified results to the state.
Neighboring Florida is also a contested governor's race. Democrat Andrew Gillum, trailing Republican Ron DeSantis in unofficial returns, also would make history as his first governor. The Gillum-DeSantis campaign has been developed with the goal of being a leader in the field of racial and ethnic complexities.
Robinson, the former Deal adviser, noted the razor-thin general elections are mostly new to Georgia. Eight years ago, Deal ran 10 percentage points ahead of his Democratic opponent; the margin was 7 percentage points, but it was decided to increase the percentage of votes. Trump won Georgia by 5 points in 2016, but barely cleared a majority. Now Kemp stands at Trump's vote with Abrams on his heels.
"Brian did what he had to do to win," Robinson said. Purpose, "In two years, we will be at parity or a slight Democratic advantage … His re-election in a purple state" African-American. "
Ben Williams, a Southern Christian Leadership Conference leader in suburban Atlanta's Cobb County, said Kemp must be acknowledged – for some elements of the campaign. Williams pointed to a photo of Kemp standing with a backdrop of a white supremacist. Kemp's campaign distanced itself at the time, noting Kemp agreed to snapshots with anyone who asked at his public rallies.
In the campaign's closing days, Kemp criticized a robocall from an out-of-state white supremacy group impersonating Oprah Winfrey and describing Abrams in racist terms. But he took heat for his campaign by sending a message to his wife. Black Panthers Holding Abrams' campaign signs and calling it proof of her radicalism. There was no proof of the affiliation of those pictured, and they were not with Abrams' campaign.
Williams said it adds up to a "blatantly racist" effort, intentional or not.
Kemp and Deal have sidestepped mentions of race. But Deal seemingly gave a nod to the sensitivities when he tapped one of his Cabinet members to succeed Kemp as Secretary of State. Robyn Crittenden is the first African-American woman to serve a statewide constitutional office in Georgia.
Follow Barrow on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BillBarrowAP.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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