Stacey Abrams: I’m Not ‘Loudly Campaigning’ to Be VP 

Stacey Abrams—the failed Georgia gubernatorial candidate who has arguably been the top and most vocal campaigner to be Joe Biden’s running mate—insists she is not “loudly campaigning” to be on the 2020 ticket in an interview with the “Into America” podcast that was released on Monday evening.

“I do not see myself as loudly campaigning. I see myself as answering questions. And let’s be clear. I’ve been getting questions about this since March of 2019,” Abrams told host Trymaine Lee. “And it is an honor to be included among so many smart, capable, effective leaders.”

She said her “ambition is not a seat” but “the work” and implied she can help Biden carry Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Michigan by helping turn out black in Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and Detroit, respectively.

“Voters of color, and particularly black women, have been loyal to the Democratic Party,” Abrams said. “And I would say that if we want to win Michigan, and Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania, of course it’s critical that we have large turnout. But that turnout is going to specifically have to be in Detroit, and Milwaukee, and Philadelphia.”

Abrams also argued that she can help Democrats expand the Electoral map and make more gains in Congress in the 2022 election cycle.

“But we also have to expand the map to the Sun Belt states. We have to win Phoenix, and we have to win Atlanta. We need to win in Durham if we want to pick up the Senate,” Abrams continued. “We need to also start thinking about the next wave of elections, the midterms that follow 2020 and the elections after that. And my hope is that they will take into consideration the concerns of communities of color and that whatever decision they make, the choice they make for running mate, it will reflect, and answer to, and respond to the concerns.”

Ultimately, Abrams said “having a woman of color can be an incredibly useful responsibility because a woman of color can help Vice President Biden turn out voters that he needs who currently do not trust the leadership they see in Washington today.”