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By: Sydney Carroll & Ford McCracken
January 6, 2021 Series Part 1
You may have been shocked to hear that an election was still occurring, even just 15 days before President-elect Joe Biden is sworn into office. However, the state of Georgia, which shockingly turned blue in the Presidential race, had two elections still taking place in early January. These elections are known as run-off elections, with the twin contests taking place between Rev. Raphael Warnock (D) and Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R), as well as between Jon Osoff (D) and Sen. David Perdue (R), to determine who will win Georgia’s two Senate seats and which party gets the majority.
What is a Run-Off Election?
According to Vox Media, A run-off election occurs because “no candidate can advance through a primary or a general election system without first earning more than 50 percent of the votes in the state of Georgia”. In the general election, while President-elect Joe Biden received over 50 percent of the vote, no candidate in either of the Senate races received the required threshold. As such, both races deferred to a January runoff. This was major news for the Democratic party, as their opportunity to potentially win two Senate seats in Georgia would not only affect their standing in Congress but the overall success of the former Vice President’s presidency.
What were the results of the Run-Off Election?
The hard work of Democrats in the formerly red state of Georgia certainly paid off, as both Rev. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff came out victorious over two incumbent candidates. While Warnock was declared the winner the night of the election, it took slightly longer for Ossoff to be officially named Senator-elect, as his race with Sen. David Perdue was much closer. While Warnock won 50.8% of the vote and beat Loeffler by 73,000 votes, Osoff won 50.4% of the vote and beat Perdue by a mere 35,000 votes. This run-off, however, was historic. According to state officials, “more than four million Georgians cast ballots in Tuesday’s runoff contests, surpassing the number of votes cast in the state during the 2016 presidential race.” According to NBC News, the previous record for a runoff turnout in Georgia was only 2.1 million voters in a 2008 Senate race.
How did Democrats manage to win these elections?
The hard work of grassroots organizers and fundraising across the country cannot be understated in the success of Ossoff and Warnock’s campaigns. According to Business Insider, former Gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams registered “over 800,000 voters and formed three nonprofit organizations.” A large focus of organizers and both campaigns was to bring out Black voters and work to fight the suppression of voters of color. Founder of Black Voters Matter, LaTosha Brown, was instrumental in fueling Black voters to arrive at the polls. “We wanted people, we wanted Black voters in particular, to feel a sense of their power and their agency, and in spite of all odds, what we could do in pushing this country forward.” As well, Senator-elect Jon Ossoff made it his priority to win the youth vote for both himself and Rev. Warnock. According to the Washington Post, over 281,000 voters under 30 had voted by mail-in vote alone, surpassing the record youth turnout for Georgia in the November election. The reason? Ossoff’s social media. Ossoff was the only candidate in either election to create an account on the popular app TikTok and has roughly 360,000 followers on the platform and over 6.1 million likes. Aiden Kohn-Murphy, founder of Gen Z for Change, felt that Ossoff’s presence on the app was a boost to his perception amongst youth. “I think for Ossoff, that's a perfect step because there's already a youth focus on Ossoff, and I think what he is doing is helping to drive it, especially on TikTok, and his digital team is doing a really good job, because the videos they're making are caught up with trends, and they're just very well done.”
Democrats control the Senate. What can they achieve?
Democrats officially have clinched the Senate majority with wins in both of the Georgia runoff elections. Nationally, there are 100 senate seats (2 afforded to each state). Prior to the Georgia runoff, the Senate was composed of 50 Republican senators and 48 Democratic Senators. By Democrats winning the two remaining Senate seats, it would divide Congress 50-50. In the case of any tie along party lines in which congress is split, the deciding vote goes to the Vice President: Kamala Harris. Democrats also retained control of the House of Representatives and won the presidency during the November Election, meaning that Democrats currently control both the executive and legislative branches. While this is far fewer seats than they originally would have preferred, they can still achieve some of their agenda without the 60-seat supermajority (prevents Republicans from using the filibuster). Speaking of the filibuster, this is something else Democrats would like to do away with. However, that seems unlikely, given that Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W. Va.) has already said he opposes eliminating the filibuster. Democrats can still get Biden’s cabinet confirmed, and they also will be able to pass much of the Biden administration’s new budget. They will also now control many of the Senate committees. Other reforms that are on the more progressive side, such as the Green New Deal, are almost certainly off the table.
With these key wins, it’s clear that Democrats have a renewed zeal to achieve their legislative goals in Congress. While the current state of American politics is turbulent (to put it lightly), both Democrats and Republicans will be entering the 117th Congress with a different understanding of what it means to be a lawmaker, and more importantly, what it means to be American.
Discussion Questions:
What will be the main legislative priorities of Democrats now that they have control of the Senate?
Will Kamala Harris’ tie-breaking vote cause Senators to vote more along party lines?
How were the campaign efforts of Democrats vital in their wins in Georgia?
Did these wins in any way incite the recent insurrection at the Capitol?
Sources Used/Further Reading:
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