Democrats take control of Senate as they win second race in Georgia

Democratic Senate candidates Rev. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff were both projected victors on Wednesday.

Democrats on Wednesday completed a sweep of the two U.S. Senate seats up for grabs in runoff elections in Georgia, giving the party control of the chamber and boosting the prospects for President-elect Joe Biden’s ambitious legislative agenda.

Edison Research projected victory for Jon Ossoff, a documentary filmmaker, on Wednesday afternoon after fellow Democrat Raphael Warnock, a Baptist preacher, was projected as the victor in his Senate race in the early hours of Wednesday.

In Tuesday’s runoffs, Warnock defeated Kelly Loeffler, who was appointed a year ago to fill the seat of a retiring senator, and Ossoff beat David Perdue, who served a single term in the Senate.

Ossoff drew 50.3% and Perdue had 49.7% with 98% of the expected vote in, according to Edison. That pushed Ossoff’s lead beyond the margin needed to avoid a possible recount, and Edison said it expected his lead to grow.

The double Democratic triumph splits the Senate 50-50, with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris’s tie-breaking vote giving Democrats control of the chamber. Each of the 50 states is represented by two senators in the 100-seat chamber.

The sweep by the two Democratic candidates gives their party control of both chambers of Congress and the White House for the first time in a decade, dramatically shifting the balance of power in Washington.

Reuters