Stacey Abrams filed a lawsuit in federal court on Monday over claims that she should be allowed to form a leadership committee to let her receive unlimited donations and begin taking contributions immediately.
State law currently prevents her gubernatorial leadership committee from doing so.
The fundraising committee was created by Georgia lawmakers last year.
Republican governor Brian Kemp, who is running for a second term, has already been reaping the benefits from access to the leadership committee, which allows certain people and groups to accept unlimited contributions.
“Brian Kemp signed legislation giving himself exclusive access to a special fundraising committee, and he’s already raised millions of dollars into it,” Abrams’s campaign said in a statement. “Our campaign should have that same access.”
However, the state has not yet officially approved Abrams as the Democratic party nominee. But Abrams says that she became the nominee for the Democratic primary on May 24.
“Ms Abrams – the sole qualified and declared Democratic candidate for Governor of Georgia – and her campaign committee will be unable to operate, control, chair, or otherwise use One Georgia, a leadership committee … to support her campaign without credible and justified threat and fear of legal proceedings being instituted against Plaintiffs,” the lawsuit said.
“As a direct consequence, Plaintiffs will suffer ongoing and irreparable injury to their ability to use political speech to advocate for Ms Abrams’s campaign, especially compared to her chief opponent, sitting Governor Brian P Kemp.”
The Democrats appear to be playing catch-up when it comes to raising funds on the campaign trail.
Former President Donald Trump held a rally in Georgia on Saturday night to campaign for GOP gubernatorial candidate David Perdue.
“Donald Trump was in Georgia today campaigning for top Republicans, spreading the Big Lie and attacking me. Not surprisingly, top Georgia Republicans went right along with his every attack and every lie,” Abrams wrote in a letter shared online.
Trump turned his back on Kemp amid the election 2020 voting controversy. He accused Kemp of “selling out” Georgia.
“If there’s one thing the people of Georgia need to know about this race it’s that Brian Kemp, he sold you out,” Trump said at the rally. “He didn’t look, he didn’t want to look, didn’t want anything to do with it…Kemp has repeatedly caved to Stacey Abrams. I think he’s afraid of her, why is he afraid of her?”
