THOMASVILLE — The message Stacey Abrams is carrying to voters in 2022 isn’t far removed from the one she had four years ago.

Abrams is the lone Democrat running for governor in the May primary. Four years ago, she lost by less than 55,000 votes to Brian Kemp. 

Many of the same issues she campaigned on then are still significant planks in her 2022 platform.

“I am running the campaign I ran in 2018,” Abrams said during a stop in Thomasville on Friday, “and that I believe is necessary now because sadly, so many of the issues we talked about then have not been addressed.”

Those issues, Abrams said, have been multiplied with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The ravages of social injustices and economic injustices are being revealed every day by COVID,” she said. “My ethos is the same.

“I think what is so important is that we understand how acutely necessary action is today. Four years ago, when I talked about Medicaid expansion, when I talked about fully funding education, when I talked about the need for mental health investment, when I championed criminal justice reform as a part of public safety, those were all part of conversations we were having. But now we have these proof points that how critical these needs are and how urgent they are.” 

Abrams, who announced her 2022 candidacy on December 1, less than a year before the general election, said she also wants constituents to know that it is possible to solve those issues.

“This has been a dark few years, and it’s easy to get mired in the depression, the anxiety and the pain,” she said.

Abrams congratulated Speaker of the House David Ralston for pushing through his chamber a mental health care reform measure. Under its provisions, health insurance companies would have to treat mental health in the same manner in which they treat physical health.

“It’s an acute issue here down in south Georgia,” Abrams said. “When Southwestern (State Hospital) shut down, the remedy and the opportunity to get succor and get support disappeared for too many families. I know that it is an absolute need here but it is a true need across the state. I applaud Speaker Ralston and the legislation and his focus on it. Unfortunately, we should have been doing this for the last decade, if not more.”

Abrams said she is concerned that without Medicaid being expanded in the state, many people who would need that help wouldn’t be able to pay for it.

“A linchpin for his plan is that your health insurance has to treat mental health and physical health the same,” she said. “For half a million Georgians, we are denying them access to health insurance, and these are the same people who are most likely to need that insurance to get access to any kind of care. 

“If we are truly serious about mental health, we have to be truly serious about mental health for all Georgians, whether they can afford it or not.” 

Abrams has begun a tour of Georgia, though she faces no opposition in May. Her campaign has $9.2 million in its war chest to date and she said the beginning of her road swing has been “fantastic.”

“I love being out and about, talking to community members and more importantly, hearing from them,” she said. “I’ve heard a consistent message from across the state as we travel. But I also hear excitement and hope. It’s being measured with some fear and anxiety over what’s happening now. My goal is to get us to the strong side of hope and the strong side of opportunity.”

Since her loss to Kemp in 2018, Abrams has been at the forefront of voting rights movements, leading the organization Fair Fight. 

“Not becoming governor has given a great deal of time to think about why this job matters and why this is the job I am seeking,” she said. “I was proud of who I was before, but I’m also proud of who I’ve become. And my mission is to be the most prepared person Georgia has seen to stand for governor and lead the state.”