ATLANTA • Democratic challenger Stacey Abrams conceded to Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp on Tuesday in their rematch of their 2018 race.

Abrams called Kemp to concede and went on stage minutes later to congratulate the governor. The Associated Press had not yet called the race Tuesday night.

Kemp, who was a developer before serving as a state senator and secretary of state, clinched another term despite attacks from former President Donald Trump that threatened to snuff out support in his own party.

Abrams, a lawyer whose 2018 loss to Kemp helped launch her into Democratic stardom, would have been the first Black woman to serve as a governor in the United States if she had won.

Kemp highlighted his stewardship of the state economy and his decision to relax public restrictions early in the COVID-19 pandemic.

He also gave billions in tax breaks and handouts using federal and state money. Kemp pushed laws to suspend the state gas tax, give $1 billion of state income tax refunds and even give $350 to every person in the state on public assistance. He also pledged another income tax break and a property tax break if reelected, portraying the cash as helping Georgians “fight through 40-year-high inflation and high gas prices” that he blamed on Biden, Abrams and other Democrats.

Nearly half of Georgia voters say the economy is the most pressing issue facing the country, according to AP VoteCast, an expansive survey of more than 3,000 voters in the state.

Stacey Abrams

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS