Note: The Runoff Report will be back Monday, Jan. 4. Happy New Year!
Republicans have secured 50 seats in the next U.S. Senate compared to Democrats’ 48 (including two independents who caucus with them). Control of the next Senate comes down to Georgia’s runoff elections. In The Runoff Report, we provide the latest on each race and the fight for Senate control.
Regular election updates
David Perdue was on Fox & Friends and three radio shows this morning. He discussed early voting, COVID-19 stimulus checks, election security, and more. Perdue said of Mitch McConnell introducing a bill combining stimulus checks with other provisions, “The Democrats themselves held this up for months, and so here in the last minute, they’re complaining about the normal operation of the Senate. … I can tell you the three things that Mitch McConnell is trying to do are in line with what the president has said.”
On Dec. 29, Perdue campaigned in Forsyth, Thomaston, Milner, Jackson, and McDonough.
Jon Ossoff said in a statement about Perdue’s support for $2,000 COVID-19 relief checks: “The people have needed help, but for the past year, David Perdue has opposed all direct relief for working Georgians even while he cashed out personally on the pandemic by trading medical stocks. He hasn’t had a change of heart — he’s exclusively focused on his own political survival. Georgians deserve a Senator who will always look out for them, not just when it’s politically convenient.”
Ossoff also released two ads, one of which features former President Barack Obama.
This election is for a full six-year term ending January 2027. Perdue was first elected in 2014. Ossoff ran against Karen Handel (R) in the 6th Congressional District special election in 2017.
Click here for more coverage of the regular election.
Special election updates
Kelly Loeffler said on Fox & Friends on Dec. 29, “Democrats have blocked relief time and again. … We have to hold Democrats accountable on January 5th. Because that’s what’s on the ballot. Who’s going to fight for the American people? That’s what David Perdue and I have been doing since Day 1, and we’re going to continue to do that.”
Loeffler also campaigned in Cherokee, Paulding, and Coweta counties.
Raphael Warnock said in a statement about Loeffler’s support for $2,000 stimulus checks: “Kelly Loeffler made clear her priorities when she sold $3 million of her own stock while downplaying the pandemic, called unemployment relief ‘counterproductive,’ and then waited nearly nine months to take any action on additional relief while Georgians lost their jobs. Georgians learned long ago they can’t trust Kelly Loeffler to look out for anyone but herself.”
The special election will fill the remainder of the term Johnny Isakson (R) won in 2016. He resigned in Dec. 2019, and Gov. Brian Kemp (R) appointed Loeffler, co-owner of the WNBA team Atlanta Dream. Warnock is senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church. The winner will complete the term ending in January 2023.
Click here for more coverage of the special election.
Overall campaign updates
- President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will campaign for Ossoff and Warnock in Georgia ahead of the runoffs. Harris will be in Savannah on Jan. 3. Biden will be in Atlanta on Jan. 4.
- President Donald Trump will hold a rally for Loeffler and Perdue in Dalton on Jan. 4.
- Early in-person voting ends tomorrow, Dec. 31, in most Georgia counties. But in the following counties, today is the last day to cast an early vote in person: Fulton, Henry, Pickens, and Upson. January 1 is the last day voters may request absentee ballots.
Today: Part 3—General election vote shares by county
In previous editions, we highlighted vote shares for Perdue and Ossoff by county in the Nov. 3 election as well as vote shares for Loeffler, Warnock, and Doug Collins (R) in the special election by county.
Today, we present our final county vote share map, where we combine votes for all Republican candidates and all Democratic candidates in the Nov. 3 special election. Twenty candidates ran in the election, including eight Democrats and six Republicans.
Click here to view the map on our website, where you can hover over counties to see vote percentages by party.
Click here to compare the special election vote share map to the regular election map.