Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff calls for support for his wife, Vice President Kamala Harris, in her bid for the presidency. (Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder)
The nation’s first second gentleman came to Georgia this week in an attempt to upgrade his title to first gentleman.
Doug Emhoff swung through Georgia this week with stops in Newnan, metro Atlanta and Athens for a series of receptions and campaign stops aimed at convincing voters to promote his wife, Vice President Kamala Harris, to president.
At an Atlanta stop, Emhoff helped kick off the city’s Pride Weekend, touting Harris’ record on LGBTQ issues.
“She is going to stand up for your freedom, not try to take your freedom away,” Emhoff said. “To love who you want to love, marry who you want to marry, and just the right to be who you want to be.”
He was joined by well-known Georgia Democrats including Sen. Raphael Warnock, former gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams and film star Julia Roberts, a native of Smyrna.
Emhoff said Harris has prioritized LGBTQ rights throughout her career, which began as district attorney in San Francisco, which has historically had a prominent LGBTQ community.
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An attorney and professor of law, Emhoff said the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision which eliminated the constitutional right to abortion and sent the matter back to states, could lead to the erosion of other rights related to a right to privacy.
“That includes gay marriage, that includes loving who we want to love, that includes the right to contraception, and so many other fundamental core rights that we thought were locked in,” he said.
State Rep. Sam Park, a Lawrenceville Democrat and the first openly gay man in the state Legislature, said a Harris presidency would help counteract anti-LGBTQ laws likely to arise during next year’s state lawmaking session.
“This wave of fear, hate, and anti-LGBTQ-plus fervor is sweeping our national politics too,” he said. ”It’s why we need Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. (Tim) Walz to protect our fundamental freedoms and rights. The past four years, Vice President Harris has seen the historic expansion of LGBTQ families’ freedoms, and she will continue that fight when we elect her as our next president.”
State Rep. Sam Park. (Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder)
Emhoff also played the role of attack dog against Harris’ opponent, former President Donald Trump, seeking to paint him as extreme, out of touch and dangerous.
“He’s a degraded version of an already horrible person, and he just keeps getting worse,” Emhoff said. “So, he’s an even bigger threat this time, and so people just need to see it, see what’s right in front of your face.”
Emhoff said Harris’ winning coalition will include moderates and Republicans who are put off by Trump’s style and his attempts to overturn the 2020 election. Roberts encouraged the friendly crowd, many of whom bore signs reading “Out for Harris-Walz” or the word “Vote” in pride rainbow colors, to speak with friends and family who do not support Harris.
“Talk to the people who don’t believe what you believe and gently lure them, gently, gently make them see what we see so clearly, because some people just don’t, and it doesn’t make them bad or wrong, it just means they’re not there yet, but we can get there,” Roberts said.
They’ll have just under a month to do so – Election Day is Nov. 5, and early voting begins on Tuesday in Georgia. Recent polling suggests Harris might be a slight underdog to pick up Georgia’s 16 electoral votes, but still within reach of a win in the state. Polling sites 538 and Real Clear Politics both show Trump with a lead of less than one point in the Peach State.
This story was provided by WABE content partner Georgia Recorder.
