Stacey Abrams run is pivotal in building political power for black women

Women of color owned Tuesday's midterms — making history in congressional races across the country. Wins ushered in the first Native American and Somali women. 

And, even if it falls short, Stacey Abrams' battle for Georgia governor is already a significant victory.

She made history by becoming the first black female nominee for the office from a major political party in the state. And in red-leaning Georgia (which President Donald Trump won in 2016), the fact that her campaign was effective enough to make the race so close says a tremendous amount about the power of her messaging.  

Grassroots campaigning, led by women of color, made Abrams a contender and signals growing political power among black women in America.  

It's that organizing — rooted in the history of black, female domestic workers in the deep south — that still has the potential to push Abrams to victory if she advances to a runoff election against Republican candidate Brian Kemp. (As of this posting, Kemp was ahead by about 70,000 votes. And Abrams vowed not to concede until all of the absentee and contentious provisional ballots were counted.)

Grassroots organizing

Abrams' formula for advancement isn't unprecedented. Women, especially black women, pushed for and voted the issues. Black female domestic workers knocked on doors and talked to voters about criminal justice reform, health care and the fight for the dignity and economic prosperity of black families and children. 

Black women have always been critical to building political power, especially in the south. In the 1960s, Dorothy Lee Bolden gave rise to the modern-day domestic workers movement in Atlanta, organizing black house cleaners, nannies and care workers in the fight for their rights at work and the voting booth. To be a member of the National Domestic Workers Union, you had to register to vote. Bolden knew that economic power and political power were bound together, and she demanded both for domestic workers. 

This year, as the push to suppress the vote in Georgia came to the fore, black domestic workers pressed on. As an electorate, black women are powerful. We have had some of the highest voting rates in the country, and have consistently shown up for progressive and Democratic candidates. 

In Virginia’s gubernatorial race and Alabama’s special Senate election in 2017, black women voters made the difference.

Georgia is no different. Amid ongoing reports of massive voter suppression, voter intimidation, and malfunctioning voting machines across the state — all of which disproportionately impacted black communities — voters continued to show up at the polls in record numbers.

At a campaign stop last week in Atlanta, former president Barack Obama proclaimed, "I’ve heard about the domestic workers right here in Georgia mobilizing for Stacey like never before. Folks that earn their living cleaning other people’s homes, taking care of other people’s kids. If they're not too tired to vote, you better not be." 

Obama is right — it's black women who, in many instances, have the most at stake when it comes to reforms. And in Georgia, they were heavily invested in campaigning for a governor who would put their interests front and center. 

Abrams focused on issues — health care, reproductive rights and criminal justice reform — that domestic workers and other women of color throughout the state struggle with every day. 

High participation for black and female voters 

Early voters in Georgia turned out in record numbers — more than 2 million participated. Black voters and female voters took an early lead, according to numbers reported last month (when early voting began) in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

At that time, more than 40 percent of early voters were African American (yet they make up less than a third of registered voters statewide) and nearly 60 percent were women. 

Though they are not often the most visible in our society, domestic workers powered the grassroots energy for female candidates of color. 

And as their work continues, they will expand opportunities for diverse voices — from the young mom working multiple jobs to provide for her family to the barbershop owner looking to pay his employees a living wage — at the tables of power. 

The significance of Abrams' candidacy cannot be overstated. Nor can the efforts of the domestic workers who are hungry for a change in our political establishment.

They are a living example of what democracy can and will look like for our nation. They are blazing and sustaining a trail for candidates like Abrams in Georgia and women across the country. It is about time others started paying attention.  

Alicia Garza is a co-founder of Black Lives Matter, a principal at Black Futures Lab and an adviser for Care in Action, the policy and advocacy organization for more than 2 million domestic workers across America.