Gabriel Sterling (Jessica McGowan/Getty Images)
ATLANTA - Gabriel Sterling has thrown his hat in the race to be the state's top election official.
Sterling, who made headlines for rebuking President Donald Trump over claims that the 2020 election was stolen, announced on Thursday that he would run for Georgia secretary of state in 2026.
What we know:
According to public records, Sterling filed a "Declaration of Intention to Accept Campaign Contributions" form with the state ethics commission on Tuesday. This marks the first step candidates must take in order to begin raising campaign funds.
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger appointed Sterling COO of the Secretary of State's office in 2018. He became an independent contractor in November 2019, and worked to roll out the use of new voting machines purchased from Dominion Voting Systems for the 2020 Georgia state elections.
At a press conference, he rejected President Donald Trump's allegations of voter fraud after Joe Biden won Georgia in the 2020 United States presidential election, saying they were "all easily, provably false," and warned that statements by Trump and other leading Republicans would result in innocent people getting killed.
What we don't know:
It is unclear what the future holds for Raffensperger. In June, Georgia Republican delegates voted overwhelmingly at the GOP convention to not allow Raffensperger to run under the party's banner in the future.
The two-term secretary of state has said he’s considering running for governor or U.S. Senate in 2026.
The Source: FOX 5 obtained the "Declaration of Intention to Accept Campaign Contributions" filed by Gabe Sterling. Other information related to the 2020 election and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger came from previous FOX 5 reporting.