Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Wednesday called on the state’s legislature to eliminate runoff elections in the wake of last week’s U.S. Senate contest, saying they interfere with the holiday season.
The statement from Raffensperger comes after Herschel Walker, a Republican, lost in a runoff against incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) after neither candidate reached the 50% threshold during the midterm election to win the seat outright.
“Georgia is one of the only states in the country with a General Election Runoff,” Raffensperger said. “We’re also one of the only states that always seems to have a runoff. I’m calling on the General Assembly to visit the topic of the General Election Runoff and consider reforms.”
Georgia’s General Assembly meets in January and could easily make changes that would keep elections “safe, secure, and efficient,” he said.
“No one wants to be dealing with politics in the middle of their family holiday,” Raffensperger said. “It’s even tougher on the counties who had a difficult time completing all of their deadlines, an election audit and executing a runoff in a four-week time period.”
The statement noted that the turnout in last month’s midterms “shattered previous turnout records and achieved a high level of access for Georgia voters.”
Republicans won by large margins in Georgia during the midterms except for Walker, who battled in vain to overcome personal baggage that surfaced in the bruising campaign.
Walker chose to run after former President Donald Trump repeatedly pushed him to run for the seat.
“Wouldn’t it be fantastic if the legendary Herschel Walker ran for the United States Senate in Georgia?” Trump said in a statement in March 2021. “He would be unstoppable, just like he was when he played for the Georgia Bulldogs, and in the NFL. He is also a GREAT person. Run Herschel, run!”
Walker’s 23-year-old son Christian Walker said his family had urged him not to run.
“Republicans, we say we don’t play ‘identity politics’ and then you ran this man mainly because he was the same skin color as his opponent with no background other than football,” he added. “A boring old Republican could have won.”
Republicans, we say we don’t play “identity politics” and then you ran this man mainly because he was the same skin color as his opponent with no background other than football. A boring old Republican could have won.
— Christian Walker (@ChristianWalk1r) December 7, 2022