Abrams sues for more time; Kemp's campaign says math is clear

ATLANTA — Channel 2 Action News is waiting to learn if a federal court judge will schedule an emergency hearing Tuesday to delay county certification of the election by one day, as the race for Georgia governor remains unsettled.

How many votes remain to be counted depends on which side you ask. Republican gubernatorial candidate Brian Kemp said it's less than 14,000.

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams said it's around 26,000, and her campaign is now asking the courts to get involved.

[READ MORE: Brian Kemp's lead shrinks, Stacey Abrams to file new lawsuit in governor's race]

The Abrams campaign filed a lawsuit Sunday even as the Kemp campaign maintains the election is over.

"From the beginning of this campaign, we have said that every single voter matters," said Lauren Groh-Wargo, Abrams' campaign manager.

Channel 2's Richard Elliot met with Groh-Wargo Monday morning to talk about how many outstanding votes are still out there almost a full week since Election Day last Tuesday.

Groh-Wargo said she believes that there are enough uncounted votes, whether absentee or provisional, that Abrams can force Kemp into a runoff.

"We are about 21,000 votes away from forcing a runoff in this race. And by our count, there are at least 26,000 uncounted ballots," Groh-Wargo said.

Elliot also spoke with John Chandler, a lawyer on the Abrams campaign legal team.

"The judges have sided with the voters every single time," Chandler said.

RELATED STORIES:

The Abrams legal team wants the following:

1. Counties to count more provisional ballots, including those belonging to voters who, for whatever reason, voted in the wrong county.
2. Stop counties from rejecting ballots for what they say are arbitrary reasons, and to make all counties apply the law the same way.
3. Delay the counties from certifying their votes for 24 hours.

Chandler said even a delay would help restore faith in the elections.

"It's so important for people to believe in the integrity of an election, and I'm afraid we're very, very far from that," Chandler said.

The Abrams campaign thinks it still has a shot, but Kemp's campaign does not.

After Elliot spoke with the Abrams campaign, he went to speak with the Kemp campaign, specifically Kemp's communications director, Ryan Mahoney.

"The race is over. Brian Kemp is the governor-elect. We're moving on, and they should as well," Mahoney said. "For hardworking Georgians, they're ready to move on. That's the reason to get the campaign behind us."

Mahoney said the Abrams campaign's numbers are wrong, that there are less than 14,000 outstanding votes out there. He said even if Abrams got every single one, she still wouldn't have enough.

"It's been a very tough 20 months, and I think everybody is ready to come together and have Thanksgiving and have Christmas and move on, and I think that's what they need to do and she needs to concede," Mahoney said.

A federal court judge would have to hear the request from the Abrams team for an injunction Tuesday morning. There's no word yet if that will happen.

Stay with Channel 2 Action News for the latest on this developing story.

Cox Media Group