Georgia Senate Runoff Election: Democrat Raphael Warnock defeats Republican Loeffler

Democrat Raphael Warnock is projected as the winner in one of the two crucial runoff elections in Georgia against Republican Kelly Loeffler on January 5 (local time). This high-stake election will also determine who will have the control over the Senate and potentially even the fate of President-elect Joe Biden’s term at the White House. As major US media outlets projected Warnock the winner, he said in a video message that with hard work “anything is possible”. However, in order to flip the Senate, Democrats need to win both contests even as the other race remains too close. 

“Tonight we proved that with hope, hard works and the people by our side, anything is possible," Warnock said in a video Livestream.

The other race is between Democrat Jon Ossoff and Republican David Perdue and according to NBC News, the difference is marginal even as at least 98 per cent of the expected vote has been counted. If Perdue wins over Ossoff, Republicans will continue to maintain a majority in the Senate and can potentially block Biden’s Cabinet appointments, judicial picks or even legislative agenda throughout the years. Earlier, endorsing the Democrat candidates in a rally in Georgia, the President-elect had said that the colossal stakes would “chart the course not just for the next four years, but for the next generation.”

Read - Raphael Warnock Promises To Work For All Georgians

Read - EXPLAINER: How Warnock Won 1 Of Georgia's 2 Senate Runoffs

Who is Raphael Warnock?

Warnock ran for the public office for the first time and is the pastor of Martin Luther King Jr.’s former church in Atlanta. He will not only be the first Black Senator from Georgia but also only the 11th Black senator in the history of the United States. Warnock was born in Savannah and has 11 brothers and sisters raised by his Pentecostal preacher parents in a public housing project. Later, he attended the black Morehouse College on a Pell Grant. Former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams also tweeted a congratulatory message for Warnock and called him a “leader with courage”.

Read - Warnock Makes History With Senate Win As Dems Near Majority

Read - Warnock And Loeffler Work To Consolidate Voters For Runoff