PHILADELPHIA -- House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams, D-Atlanta, takes the stage at the Democratic National Convention in about an hour, at 6 p.m.
Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotek and California Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León will join Abrams as part of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee program on the convention's opening night.
In advance of Abrams' speech, here are five things to know about her:
1. She's incredibly smart. She holds degrees from Spelman College, the University of Texas and Yale Law School and is a former member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle respect her intellect.
2. She has statewide ambition. Although Abrams is always careful to say she's focused on whatever election, legislative session or vote is next in line, it's no secret she is considering a bid for higher office, with most speculation centering around the 2018 campaign for governor.
3. She has her detractors, in and out of the party: There's no leader anywhere without critics and Abrams is no exception. Some in her own caucus question whether Abrams is more focused on her own ambition than on what's best for the caucus. Abrams argues otherwise and the two are not necessarily mutually exclusive.
4. She is leading a lot of moving parts. Abrams is the leader of the New Georgia Project, which aims to register thousands of new Democratic voters. It's a group that ran into controversy in 2014 over how it spent $4 million in raised cash and the GeorgiaNext superpac aimed at electing Democrats.
5. She has a romantic side. Abrams also is a prolific author of romance novels under the pen name Selena Montgomery. She wrote her first book while in her third year at Yale Law School. In one book, David Ralston, who in real life is speaker of the Georgia House, plays the solicitor general of the United States.
About the Author
