Trust your vote, not pollsters, Ossoff says at Marietta rally for Abrams

Nov. 3—MARIETTA — At Stacey Abrams' latest campaign stop in Cobb County, the message was clear: votes determine the outcomes of elections, not polls.

Abrams and U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Georgia, headlined the Tuesday night rally at Schoolhouse Brewing in Marietta. A week before Election Day, they urged the crowd of about 100 to get out the vote, reminding them that nobody expected Ossoff and his Senate colleague, Raphael Warnock, to pull out upset victories in the Senate runoff races last January.

"I want you to remember, as there's so much chatter in the closing days, that folks who made their living or made their reputation predicting the outcomes of elections said there was no way that the 33-year-old Jewish son of an immigrant and the Black pastor who holds Dr. King's pulpit in Ebenezer Baptist Church were gonna win those two races in the state of Georgia," Ossoff said, a line he's used before on the campaign trail. "But they didn't understand you."

Ossoff did not say it outright, but the implication was clear: polls have not been in Abrams' favor as of late: an October survey from the University of Georgia gave Gov. Brian Kemp, the incumbent Republican seeking reelection, a 10-point edge over his Democratic challenger.

Abrams hammered her opponent's stances on everything from abortion to gun rights to healthcare during her speech. Abrams connected the latter two issues to an event she attended earlier that day outside of the Atlanta Medical Center, which was owned and operated by Cobb-based Wellstar Health System, and officially closed its doors Tuesday.

"A hospital that survived 120 years, but couldn't survive four years of Brian Kemp," Abrams said. "A Level I Trauma Center that is shutting down in the state that has the ninth-highest gun violence rate in the nation, where gun violence is the No. 1 killer of our children."

Abrams coupled her attacks with how she would differ from Kemp, including implementing higher starting salaries for new teachers ($50,000) and expanding Medicaid in the state. Kemp has implemented two pay raises for teachers since taking office in 2019, bringing the starting salary to about $39,000.

She also mentioned that Kemp was rallying with former Vice President Mike Pence while she was rallying outside of Atlanta Medical Center.

"When (Pence) was the governor of Indiana, he expanded Medicaid in the state, he accepted the money," Abrams said. "He created 30,000 new good paying jobs, and they did not lose six hospitals in the last four years."

Abrams closed out her speech by asking audience members to respond "more" if they agreed with her.

"Say 'more' if you want more money in your pockets, say 'more,'" Abrams started.

"More!" the audience belted.

"Tell me if you want more opportunity in your communities," Abrams continued.

"More!" the audience responded.

And so on, until Abrams closed with, "Let's go get it done," and the clapping began again.

Shelia Edwards, a Mableton resident who was the Democratic nominee for Georgia Public Service Commission, District 3, until her race was removed from the ballot in August due to a lawsuit filed under the 1965 Voting Rights Act, told the MDJ she has been committed to getting other Democrats elected up and down the ballot.

She also said the turnout for the rally was "reflective of the mood of the people.

"And despite polls ... to the contrary, I believe that we're going to have a big win on Tuesday, Nov. 8."

John and Lori Salvino and their daughter, Kate, came from Cherokee County to attend the rally. The Salvinos said they have been concerned about reports of poll watchers intimidating voters, and will be encouraging people to vote in the election season's home stretch.

"I voted early, we got moved to a little bitty room in the north part of Cherokee County on a Sunday afternoon," Lori Salvino, a schoolteacher, said. "We stood out in line in the heat. So, they don't make it very comfortable for you."

John Salvino said politics in the state has gotten more fraught with tension since he and his family moved to Georgia in 2005.

"There was a level of respect that there isn't anymore," said Kate Salvino.

Lori Salvino returned to her ultimate goal this election: ensuring people get the opportunity to vote.

"If they need a push, if they need a little reassurance, then that's what I hope to do in the next seven days," she said.

Kemp is holding a Marietta rally at 1:30 p.m. Thursday at Williamson Brothers B-B-Q off Roswell Road, according to Cobb GOP Chairwoman Salleigh Grubbs. See the MDJ's Friday edition for coverage of that event.