{{Short description|American politician and elections official}} {{Use American English|date=November 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2021}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Gabriel Sterling | birth_name = Robert Gabriel Sterling | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1970|11|14}} | birth_place = Sandy Springs, Georgia, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = | party = Republican | education = University of Georgia (BA) }} '''Robert Gabriel Sterling''' (born November 14, 1970) is an American politician and elections official from the state of Georgia. He is the chief operating officer (COO) in the office of the Georgia Secretary of State. He previously served on the city council for Sandy Springs, Georgia. Sterling received widespread attention for his speech denouncing false claims of election fraud in the 2020 election.
== Early life and career == Sterling graduated from Riverwood International Charter School in Sandy Springs,<ref name=famous/> and the University of Georgia.<ref name=wapo>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/georgia-official-trump-election/2020/12/01/f1d5c962-3427-11eb-b59c-adb7153d10c2_story.html|title='Someone's going to get killed': GOP election official in Georgia blames President Trump for fostering violent threats|newspaper=The Washington Post|first=Amy|last=Gardner|date=December 1, 2020|accessdate=January 7, 2021}}</ref> He began working in Republican Party politics as a volunteer for Mack Mattingly in his unsuccessful 1986 reelection bid to the U.S. Senate.<ref name=felton/> He served as campaign manager for Charlie Norwood in his successful election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1994.<ref name=famous>{{cite web|url=https://www.reporternewspapers.net/2020/12/02/now-famous-for-rebuking-trump-an-election-official-is-a-familiar-sandy-springs-figure/ |title=Now famous for rebuking Trump, an election official is a familiar Sandy Springs figure |work=Reporter Newspapers |date=December 2, 2020 |accessdate=January 6, 2021}}</ref> In 1998, Sterling ran for the Georgia House of Representatives in District 43, facing Dorothy Felton in the Republican Party primary election.<ref name=felton>{{cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/403915323/?terms=gabriel%20sterling%20dorothy%20felton&match=1|title=Neophyte challenges Felton|first=S.A.|last=Reid|work=The Atlanta Constitution|page=JH7|date=July 16, 1998|accessdate=January 7, 2021|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> Sterling lost the election.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/403892184/?terms=gabriel%20sterling&match=1|title=Kenn taking a solid lead for Fulton chairman|first=Sandra|last=Eckstein|work=The Atlanta Constitution|page=D6|date=July 22, 1998|accessdate=January 7, 2021|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>
Sterling was elected to the Sandy Springs City Council, taking office in 2011. In 2017, he did not run for reelection, and instead ran for the chair's seat on the Fulton County Commission.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.reporternewspapers.net/2017/04/06/sandy-springs-councilmember-announces-run-fulton-chairman/ |title=Sandy Springs councilmember announces run for Fulton chairman |work=Reporter Newspapers |date=April 6, 2017 |accessdate=January 6, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.reporternewspapers.net/2017/11/08/reichel-wins-sandy-springs-city-council-seat/ |title=Reichel wins Sandy Springs City Council seat |work=Reporter Newspapers |date=November 8, 2017 |accessdate=January 6, 2021}}</ref> He finished in third place, behind Robb Pitts and Keisha Waites, both members of the Democratic Party.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ajc.com/news/local-govt--politics/robb-pitts-keisha-waites-face-off-lead-fulton-county-commission/IRBgoT8luK8VaoAdYrd1mK/|title=Robb Pitts, Keisha Waites face off to lead Fulton County commission|first=Arielle|last=Kass|work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|date=November 8, 2017|accessdate=January 7, 2021}}</ref>
==Georgia Secretary of State's office== Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger appointed Sterling the COO of the Secretary of State's office after winning the 2018 election.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.reporternewspapers.net/2018/12/28/former-sandy-springs-councilmember-to-be-new-georgia-secretary-of-states-coo/ |title=Former Sandy Springs councilmember to be new Georgia secretary of state's COO |publisher=Reporter Newspapers |date=December 28, 2018 |accessdate=January 6, 2021}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ajc.com/politics/georgia-elections-manager-left-state-job-got-200k-per-year-contract/WA74UJ5BQNGDDMQXITVIBZZXFI/|title=Georgia elections manager left state job, got $200K per year contract|work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|first=Marc|last=Niesse|date=December 29, 2020|accessdate=January 11, 2021}}</ref> Sterling held a press conference in which he publicly 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,"<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/2021/01/04/953321408/georgia-election-official-dont-let-misinformation-suppress-your-own-vote |title=Georgia Election Official: Don't Let Misinformation 'Suppress Your Own Vote'|first=Miles|last=Parks |publisher=NPR |date=January 4, 2021 |accessdate=January 6, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/04/politics/sterling-trump-georgia-election-official-conspiracy-theories/index.html|title=Georgia election official shoots down Trump's election conspiracy theories|first=Paul|last=LeBlanc|work=CNN|date=January 4, 2021|accessdate=January 11, 2021}}</ref> and warned that statements by Trump and other leading Republicans would result in innocent people getting killed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/biden-transition-updates/2020/12/01/940961602/someones-going-to-get-killed-ga-official-blasts-gop-silence-on-election-threats|title='Someone's Going To Get Killed': Ga. Official Blasts GOP Silence On Election Threats|date=December 1, 2020|first=Stephen|last=Fowler|work=NPR|accessdate=January 12, 2021}}</ref>
Sterling testified in public hearings before the United States House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack on June 21, 2022.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/06/17/politics/georgia-officials-testify-january-6/index.html|title=Georgia officials set to testify at Tuesday's hearing before January 6 committee|first1=Zachary|last1=Cohen|first2=Sara|last2=Murray|first3=Annie |last3=Grayer |first4=Ryan |last4=Nobles|work=CNN|date=June 17, 2022|accessdate=June 20, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|first=Tara|last=Dublin|url=https://hillreporter.com/watch-a-perfect-call-brad-raffensperger-and-gabriel-sterling-testify-to-trumps-election-fraud-attempts-in-georgia-133918|title='A Perfect Call'? Brad Raffensperger and Gabriel Sterling Testify to Trump's Election Fraud Attempts in Georgia|newspaper=The Hill|date=June 21, 2022|accessdate=June 24, 2022|archive-date=June 21, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220621203632/https://hillreporter.com/watch-a-perfect-call-brad-raffensperger-and-gabriel-sterling-testify-to-trumps-election-fraud-attempts-in-georgia-133918|url-status=dead}}</ref> During the hearing, Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA) played a recording of Sterling's remarks and asked him what had inspired them. Sterling replied that he had "lost it" after seeing a death threat against a Georgia elections worker written on Twitter by QAnon supporters spreading the same conspiracy theories about the 2020 election that Trump was espousing, and decided to speak out against such misinformation.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.yahoo.com/january-6-hearing-gabriel-sterling-184046566.html|title=January 6 Hearing: Gabriel Sterling describes reaction to seeing death threat directed toward Georgia election worker|website=Yahoo! News|date=June 21, 2022|accessdate=June 24, 2022}}</ref>
==2026 Secretary of State campaign== {{main|2026 Georgia Secretary of State election}} On September 4, 2025, Sterling announced that he would run for Georgia Secretary of State as a Republican in 2026.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Niesse |first1=Mark |title=Gabriel Sterling joins Republican race for Georgia elections chief |url=https://www.ajc.com/politics/2025/09/gabriel-sterling-joins-republican-race-for-georgia-elections-chief/ |access-date=September 4, 2025 |work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=September 4, 2025 |language=English}}</ref> He did not advance to the runoff election.<ref>https://wfin.com/fox-political-news/georgia-republicans-head-to-runoff-in-secretary-of-state-race-defined-by-2020-election-claims/</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{CongLinks|votesmart=17600}} *{{C-SPAN|128208}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sterling, Gabriel}} Category:1970 births Category:Living people Category:21st-century Georgia (U.S. state) politicians Category:Georgia (U.S. state) city council members Category:Georgia (U.S. state) Republicans Category:People associated with the 2020 United States presidential election Category:People from Sandy Springs, Georgia Category:Riverwood International Charter School alumni Category:University of Georgia alumni