Stacey Abrams, a former Democratic candidate for governor of Georgia and a leading activist for the right to vote, was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, Reuters reports.
Abrams and his organization Fair Fight Action were instrumental in increasing the participation of black voters in Georgia in this electoral cycle – an extensive effort of years that culminated in the longstanding red state turning blue.
Lars Haltbrekken, a Socialist Party politician in the Norwegian Parliament, said on Monday, the first day of Black History Month in the United States and the last day for someone to be nominated for the award, that “Abrams’ work continues on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. safe in the fight for equality before the law and civil rights. “
King won the award in 1964.
Haltbrekken added: “Abrams’ efforts to complete King’s work are crucial if the United States of America succeeds in its efforts to create brotherhood among all its people and a peaceful and just society,” said Haltbrekken.
Thousands of people can nominate someone for the tribute, which is announced annually in October.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee, based in Oslo, will release a short list for the prize in March. Other notable candidates this year include Russian dissident Alexei Navalny and teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg.
Abrams’ fight against voter suppression began in 2014 when she launched the New Georgia Project to get unregistered Georgian blacks to register to vote in that year’s mid-term elections.
After a minor defeat in the 2018 state governor race for the post of Republican governor. Brian Kemp
Brian KempDemocrats outperform the Republican Party in Georgia approval ratings: poll Georgia State Republican Party legislator presents bill requiring two copies of identity to vote absent Trump establishes ‘Office of the Former President’ in Florida MORE, Abrams created Fair Fight Action to continue fighting voter suppression in Georgia and across the country.
Kemp as Georgia’s secretary of state in 2017 orchestrated what critics described as the largest purge of voters in U.S. history – an action that disproportionately affected black residents of Peach state.
To be sure, voting rights work in Georgia is rooted in a strong grassroots organization, but Abrams is undoubtedly the face of the movement.
Abrams received praise from celebrities and lawmakers after President Biden defeated the former President Trump
Donald TrumpBiden reverses Trump’s last-minute attempt to freeze 0.4 billion programs Trump announces new legal impeachment team after reported matches Republicans struggle to unify toward the next election cycle MORE in November and even more after the Democrats held a surprise in the Georgia Senate run-off elections.
Abrams is widely expected to announce a second candidacy for the Georgian government soon. No black woman was elected governor of a state.
The last US winner of the Nobel Peace Prize was former President Obama in 2009.