Democrat Raphael Warnock Defeats GOP Sen. Kelly Loeffler in Georgia

ATLANTA — Democrat Rev. Raphael Warnock defeated Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) in one of two U.S. Senate runoff races in Georgia on Tuesday that were to determine which party takes control of Congress’s upper chamber.

Warnock finished one point ahead of Loeffler, 50.5 percent to 49.5 percent, or by about 40,000 votes, with 97 percent of precincts reporting, according to the Associated Press, which called the race at about 2 a.m. early Wednesday morning.

Warnock, the longtime senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church, gave a victory speech through a video message after midnight, saying, “I promise you this tonight: I am going to the Senate to work for all of Georgia no matter who you cast your vote for in this election.”

Because his race was a special election, he will be up for reelection in 2022.

Loeffler, who had been appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp (R) to the Senate in 2019, appeared after midnight before a crowd of campaign staff members, press, and other guests at the Georgia GOP’s election night party here at the Grand Hyatt hotel and did not concede, saying her team still sees a “path to victory.”