Stacey Abrams cited lack of interest in the job of being a senator when she announced Monday that she would not challenge vulnerable Sen. David Perdue, D-Ga., in 2020. But the 2018 Democratic gubernatorial candidate has not been shy about her political ambitions, and analysts suspect that she ruled out a Senate run so she can position herself for something better rather than risking another statewide loss.

The former Georgia state representative shot to stardom after narrowly losing her 2018 bid for governor to Republican Brian Kemp. She delivered the Democratic response to President Trump’s 2019 State of the Union address in February and has gone to work building a network of Democratic support, even meeting with former Vice President Joe Biden in March.