Republican Senators Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue both face potential losses in their Senate runoff races as election night continues to unfold in Georgia.
With more than 98% of the vote already counted, Reverend Raphael Warnock, a far-left Democrat, is up by approximately 50,000 votes over Loeffler and has been declared the winner by multiple news organizations. The razor thin margin that Perdue had over Democrat Jon Ossoff late on Tuesday night quickly evaporated and turned into a deficit of more than 15,000 votes.
“In largely complete results, Republican Sen. David Perdue won smaller vote margins than in November in about one-third of Georgia’s counties,” The Wall Street Journal reported. “Where he underperformed tells a clear story: His biggest erosion came in counties that are home to many rural, Black voters.”
“Ten of the 11 counties in which Mr. Perdue’s vote margin declined most from November are labelled as ‘African American South’ counties by the American Communities Project, which sorts the nation’s 3,100 counties by their demographic characteristics. It puts 84 of Georgia’s 159 counties into this category,” The Journal added. “By contrast, Mr. Perdue’s biggest margin gains compared with November came in a mix of county types. Among them were Bartow and Lumpkin counties, both exurbs of Atlanta, as well as Stephens County, considered an evangelical Christian stronghold. But in a sign that other factors are at work, Mr. Perdue also made strong gains in several other counties categorized as African American South.”
Statement from our campaign: pic.twitter.com/evoAgl05dy
— David Perdue (@Perduesenate) January 6, 2021
Late on Tuesday night, Loeffler addressed her supporters, saying, “I’m asking for every single Georgian, every single American, stay in the fight with us. We’re going to keep fighting for you. This is about protecting the American dream.”
“With the races being so close, election officials with the Secretary of State’s office say they expect at least one campaign to request a recount,” Fox 5 reported. “Under Georgia law, a candidate can request a recount if the margin is less than or equal to 0.5%. That request has to be made within two business days of the results being certified.”
This report has been updated to include additional information.