Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp fends off Democrat Stacey Abrams for a second term, NBC News projects

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has secured another term, fending off Democrat Stacey Abrams in the duo’s second match-up, NBC News projected.

Kemp had consistently led Abrams, a strategist and former state House minority leader, in polls by a margin of more than 5 percentage points throughout the campaign. Unlike their last election, where Abrams lost by 1.4 percentage points, Kemp had a decided advantage this time as the incumbent governor with an above-water approval rating.

Abrams brought the issue of voting rights to the forefront of the national conversation after her loss to Kemp, spending the last four years helping other Democrats win public offices. Georgia voters in 2020 elected Democrats to both U.S. Senate seats and backed President Joe Biden.

Then-President Donald Trump called the state’s secretary of state, who oversees elections, and asked him to “find” enough votes to give Trump the win. State officials, including Kemp, refused to do Trump’s bidding and drew his ire when they certified Biden’s electoral college win in Georgia.

Trump actively, and unsuccessfully, campaigned against Kemp in the primary earlier this year, endorsing former U.S. Sen. David Perdue instead.