articleThe Brief Gabe Sterling announced he is running for Georgia Secretary of State. 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. 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. The two-term secretary of state has said he’s considering running for governor or U.S. Senate in 2026.