Spending, crime, conservative issues top Kemp’s Georgia plan

Courtney Kueppers / WABE

Laying out a plan for “a safer, stronger Georgia” that includes more money for teachers and schools and an effort to crack down on crime, Republican Gov. Brian Kemp made his case for reelection Thursday.

“By keeping our state open for business, bringing record levels of jobs and investment, and fighting to put hardworking Georgians first, we now have the opportunity to build a safer, stronger Georgia for all who call the Peach State home,” Kemp told lawmakers and other state officials in his State of the State speech.

The speech came as Kemp is challenged for reelection by Republican candidates who allege he didn’t do enough to overturn Donald Trump’s electoral loss in Georgia, and Democratic nominee-apparent Stacey Abrams, whose narrow 2018 loss to Kemp vaulted her to national prominence.