Democrat Raphael Warnock projected to win Senate runoff against GOP candidate Kelly Loeffler

By ANI | Published: January 7, 2021 01:19 AM2021-01-07T01:19:25+5:302021-01-07T01:30:03+5:30

Reverend Raphael Warnock, Democratic politician and senior pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, is projected to become the first Black Senator from Georgia, defeating Republican candidate Kelly Loeffler, CNN projected on Wednesday.

Democrat Raphael Warnock projected to win Senate runoff against GOP candidate Kelly Loeffler | Democrat Raphael Warnock projected to win Senate runoff against GOP candidate Kelly Loeffler

Democrat Raphael Warnock projected to win Senate runoff against GOP candidate Kelly Loeffler

Reverend Raphael Warnock, Democratic politician and senior pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, is projected to become the first Black Senator from Georgia, defeating Republican candidate Kelly Loeffler, CNN projected on Wednesday.

Warnock is the first Georgia Democrat elected to the Senate in 20 years, and his election is the culmination of years of voter registration drives conducted by former state House Democratic leader Stacey Abrams and other activists.

"I'm deeply honored that the people of Georgia have placed their trust in someone who grew up in public housing, one of 12 children -- I'm number 11 -- the first college graduate in my family. And I hope to bring the concerns of ordinary people to the United States Senate," he said.

"I am an iteration and an example of the American dream... When I think about the arc of our history, what Georgia did last night is its own message in the midst of a moment in which so many people are trying to divide our country, at a time we can least afford to be divided," the Senator-elect told CNN's John Berman on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff has maintained a narrow lead over his Republican rival David Perdue, giving the Democrats a chance to retake the US Senate.

After no Georgia Senate candidate received 50 per cent of the vote in November, the races turned to two runoffs.

This comes as President Donald Trump continues to allege voter fraud and refuses to concede loss in the presidential elections held in November. Trump's refusal to concede has sparked a fight within the GOP party and disenchanting some of his supporters, reported CNN.

Several Senate Republicans are privately pointing the finger squarely at President Trump for the failures in Georgia.

"President Trump has disrespected the American voters, has dishonored the election system and has disgraced the office of the presidency... I'm confident we'll proceed as the Constitution demands and tell our supporters the truth, whether or not they want to hear it," said Republican Senator Mitt Romney.

According to The Washington Post (The Post), Trump recently pressured fellow Republican Brad Raffensperger, the Georgia secretary of state, to "find" enough votes to overturn his defeat in an extraordinary one-hour phone call, to which Raffensperger refused.

The victory of Democrats in both Senate races will give them control over the Senate and provide a much bigger advantage to the incoming Biden administration in setting an agenda.

( With inputs from ANI )

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor

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