This year’s packed schedule of Democratic presidential town halls and debates will feature something different: a forum specifically designed to make candidates answer to women of color.

When early voting begins today in the Georgia primary campaign for governor, Stacey Abrams, the former minority leader of the Georgia House of Representatives, may very well take a momentous step closer to becoming the first black woman in the nation to be elected governor.

Women of color are at the core of the progressive movement and their collective voting power is key to victory in the midterm elections.