Georgia Democratic Senate candidates Raphael Warnock (R) and Jon Ossoff (L) kneel elbows during a “It’s Time to Vote” rally on December 28, 2020 in Stonecrest, Georgia.
Jessica McGowan | Getty Images
More than 3 million Georgia residents cast all their votes in the January 5 two races, a historic turnout in a contest that determines whether Democrats or Republicans control the U.S. Senate this year.
The Tuesday races are between Republican Senator David Perdue and Democrat Jon Ossoff, as well as Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler and Democratic Reverend Raphael Warnock.
If Perdue and Loeffler win their races, Republicans will hold a 52-seat Senate majority, enabling them to block part of President Joe Biden’s agenda.
The Democratic caucus will have 50 seats if Ossoff and Warnock win. And a casting vote by Vice President-elect Harris will give Democrats control of the Senate after six years of a GOP majority.
Democrats currently control the House of Representatives and will continue to control the chamber in 2021. Republicans have a slim majority in the Senate.
President Donald Trump, who has unjustifiably claimed that Georgia’s two Senate games are invalid, will hold a rally in the state for Perdue and Loeffler on Monday.
Biden is expected to travel to Atlanta on Monday, while Harris will visit Savannah on Sunday to support Ossoff and Warnock. During their campaigns, the Democratic candidates broke records for fundraising, each raising more than $ 100 million over the past few months, driven primarily by small donations.
Ivanka Trump and Senators Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) and David Perdue (R-GA) wave to the crowd at a campaign rally on December 21, 2020 in Milton, Georgia.
Elijah Nouvelage | Getty Images
Perdue and Loeffler, strong allies of the president, support $ 600 stimulus payments as part of the broader aid package and attack Democratic opponents for claiming the payments are not enough. However, they reversed course and broke with many Senate Republicans to support Trump’s demands for $ 2,000 stimulus checks after Congress passed the bill.
Ossoff and Warnock are now joining Biden’s plan to provide more coronavirus relief and direct control to Americans. They condemned their opponents for their handling of the pandemic and insisted that GOP senators had not done enough to push for a vote on higher stimulus checks in the Senate.
The 3,002,100 early ballots comprise 38.8% of all registered voters in Georgia, according to information gathered by the University of Florida’s U.S. Election Project. The early vote surpasses the previous total election record for a run of about 2.1 million ballots in the 2008 Senate run-off between Republican Saxby Chambliss and Democrat Jim Martin.
Data show that Democrats have an advantage in the early voter turnout in Georgia. Early voting ended Thursday. Republicans generally see higher election day. The turnout has lagged behind in rural, conservative congressional districts in Georgia, specifically in the northwestern part of the state where Trump will fight Monday, according to local reports.
Republicans have accelerated their effort to vote. Days before the expiration, Perdue began quarantining after coming in contact with someone who tested positive for Covid-19. Perdue told Fox News on Saturday that he would not be at the president’s meeting on Monday because of the quarantine.