Barring a miracle in Congress in which the Electoral College results aren’t certified for President-elect Joe Biden, Donald Trump’s legacy is riding on the hopes of two Senate candidates in Georgia. Will Democrats finally get their way in Washington or is gridlock back on the menu?
Republican incumbents David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler are vying to hold onto their coveted Senate seats against Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock after neither candidate reached the 50% threshold on the November 3rd general election to avoid the January 5th runoff election. In the Perdue-Ossoff contest, Perdue missed the 50% mark by 0.3%, getting 49.7% of the vote. Meanwhile, in the special election, Warnock received 32.9% of the vote to Loeffler’s 25.9% in a very crowded race.
In case you didn’t know, there’s a lot at stake with these two races.
In the event that both Ossoff and Warnock win these two seats, there will be a 50-50 split between Democrats and Republicans in the Senate with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris representing the tie-breaking vote. In a deadlocked Senate, the Vice President would determine which party controls the majority. You’ll be looking at a Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and the possibilities to undo President Trump’s legacy and advance the Democratic agenda are endless.
Yet, these races are still the GOP’s to lose. By even winning just one of the two Senate races, Republicans could focus on blocking Biden’s agenda and preserving Trump’s legacy. But given what we’ve seen from Congressional Republicans, there might be one last fight for President Trump on January 6th.
On that day, Congress will be tasked with certifying the results of the Electoral College with Vice President Mike Pence, who serves as president of the Senate, presiding over the joint session. Several Congressional Republicans have openly planned to challenge the results, echoing President Trump’s claims of massive widespread voter fraud that tipped the election in favor of Joe Biden. Interestingly enough, regardless of what happens on the January 5th Senate runoff in Georgia, David Perdue will most likely be absent, since his term expires on January 3rd at noon. Meanwhile, Loeffler’s term expires in January 2023.
So, despite the amount of hype that the Georgia Senate runoff is getting, Republicans will likely be disappointed in the outcome no matter what as Trump will have one less ally fighting for him in Congress.
