Barack Obama urges Georgia residents to vote despite crackdowns



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Former President Barack Obama spoke at a campaign rally on Friday for the governorship candidate for governorship Stacey Abrams Georgia and emphasized the importance of exercising the right to vote, especially in the face of efforts to suppress it.

"They will try to deprive people of their rights and take away their right to vote," Obama said in his speech. speech the campaign event only a few days before the November 6 mid-term elections organized by the Democratic Party of Georgia at Morehouse College, a traditionally black and all-male school in Atlanta. (Abrams is a graduate of Spelman, a historically black university for women, neighbor.)

"Stacey's opponent has already been caught several times," added the former president.

Abrams is in a greenhouse A potentially historic governor race against Georgian Secretary of State Brian Kemp (right) – vying to become the country first black housekeeper.

The race for the governorship of Georgia has warmed around controversy over voting rights. Earlier this month, an Associated Press report revealed that more than 53,000 voter applications, nearly 70% of them were black people, were waiting for verification at Kemp's office. Kemp, as secretary of state, oversees the elections.

Abrams has accused Kemp of electoral repression. Kemp called such accusations a joke" and insisted that people with "pending" registrations can still vote. (These 53,000 voters can vote on polling day when they go to the polls with an accepted photo ID, but they can not vote by mail or mail until They resolve discrepancies with their listings.)

In August, a predominantly black county of Georgia had to refuse a plan to close almost all of his polling stations. Earlier this month, dozens of black elderly people from rural Georgia were ordered to get off a bus goes to the polls for early voting after county officials say the event was a "political activity" banned. And last week, a federal judge said that she would block election officials to cast ballots on the basis of signing discrepancies after careful verification of a county reject an unusually high number of postal ballots.

Georgia "has eliminated twice as many voters – 1.5 million – between the elections of 2012 and 2016 as between 2008 and 2012," according to the daily. Brennan Center for Justice. Kemp took office in 2010.

"Georgia, do not be afraid," said Obama. "If they're trying to take away your voting rights, there's only one way to get it back: the vote."

At his rally on Friday, Abrams spoke of his own l & # 39; history work on voting rights issues.

"I had to do that against the Georgian architect of the repression of voters," she said, apparently referring to Kemp.

Civil Rights Representative John Lewis (D-Ga.), Who also spoke at the Abrams rally on Friday, recalled repressive tactics from decades-old voters, such as literacy tests designed to deprive the black electors of their rights, declaring: bring us back, but we will not go back.

"I gave enough blood for that bridge in Selma 53 years ago. I almost died, some of my friends were murdered, "added Lewis. "I'm not asking you to give blood, I'm just asking you to go vote like you've never voted before."

President Donald Asset plans to hold a rally for Kemp in Macon, Georgia on Sunday. Earlier this week, Kemp is withdrawn of the second and last debate, he had to have Sunday with Abrams to join Trump during the election campaign.

Obama said, "I've seen [Abrams’] the opponent has withdrawn from this debate. What is he afraid of? He's afraid of Stacey, I guess.

Abrams has collected a number of high-level recommendations: Oprah Winfrey, in a rare political support, gave a speech and knocked on doors for Abrams this week. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former president Jimmy Carter have all endorsed Abrams, with celebrities Will Ferrell, Tracee Ellis Ross and Uzo Aduba.

Obama has approved Abrams with a bunch of other democratic candidatesincluding Lucy McBathwho presents himself for the Congress in the 6th Georgian District, which also spoke at the rally on Friday. Earlier Friday, Obama perplexed for democrat Andrew Gillum, who is running for governorship in Florida.

"Congressman John Lewis is here. John saw this game be played before, "Obama told Abrams' rally on Friday, pointing out that the country had gone through another difficult period of its history.

"John Lewis did not sit idly by saying," I hope that someday it will get better. "… people have walked," added Obama. "And when they got the right to vote, people voted to make a better story."

"You win the right to vote, people are still trying to take it off – try to do it in Georgia right now, here in 2018," added the former president. "Do not boo, vote."

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