Stacey Abrams is apparently going to run again for governor

Abrams still has not conceded defeat in the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial election. She also has not made good on her promise to prove that the race, which came the same year that Georgia set an all-time record for the number of votes cast, was stolen through voter suppression. Abrams’s most energetic fans in politics and the press likewise refuse to concede that Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp defeated her fairly by an estimated 55,000 votes.

So, do Abrams and her allies refer to her reported upcoming candidacy as a “reelection” bid? Or do they finally drop the governor-in-exile bit?

We shall see!

“Three Democrats with knowledge of the former state house minority leader’s aspirations tell The Daily Beast that they expect her to run for governor in 2022,” the report reads. “Abrams is considered to be the presumed frontrunner for the nomination — even without announcing a bid — among plugged-in Georgia Democrats.”

“Stacey Abrams intends to run for governor again,” said Democratic National Committee member and Georgia Democratic Party executive committee member Wendy Davis. “I think that is a secret to no one.”

She adds, “Everyone in Democratic circles has the expectation that she will be the Democratic nominee in two years for governor.”

Former Georgia Democratic Party chairman and Abrams ally DuBose Porter said, “In my opinion, she would like to be governor of Georgia. Stacey Abrams is about getting the work done.”

A third source told the Daily Beast that “another run for governor is indeed being considered,” but the person also “emphasized that she is honing in on anti-voter suppression work, particularly as the national attention shifts to two runoff Senate races that will determine the political direction of the upper chamber of Congress.”

Yes, yes. Very coy. These three Abrams allies just managed somehow to find their way into the same Daily Beast report to suggest that maybe she is going to run again for governor. Translation: She is going to run again for governor. Look, we get it. The hedging is necessary because only Abrams gets to announce her own candidacy. Her allies are just laying down the groundwork for the eventual reveal.

All that said, the more interesting issue here, aside from the awkwardness of running again for a position she refuses to admit she lost once already, is that it will mark a downgrade for Abrams, who has tried hard these past several months to land herself a spot on President-elect Joe Biden’s team.

Indeed, Abrams lobbied harder than anyone I have ever seen to become the former vice president’s running mate. She failed, obviously. Abrams also lobbied hard to land a Cabinet gig in the Biden administration. She clearly failed there as well.

On Thursday, as the Daily Beast reported that Abrams is going to try again to capture the governor’s mansion in Georgia, we are reminded once more that there is a wide gap between how the press see Abrams and how the Democratic Party sees her. Media think of Abrams as a trailblazing political whiz-kid, a veritable savior of Democratic politics and policies. The latter see Abrams as, well, let’s just say that even though party leaders may find her useful on occasion, their actions suggest they have an unflattering and blunt assessment of the failed gubernatorial candidate.

Abrams reportedly falling back on governor, even after all she has tried to do to ingratiate herself with Biden, should tell you a bit about how the party sees her versus how her fans in media see her.