Category Archives: Georgia

‘The new south’: Raphael Warnock becomes Georgia’s first Black senator

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State on the brink of delivering the Democrats control of Senate is in a cultural, demographic and political transition

The Ebenezer Baptist church in Atlanta has witnessed tides of history ebb and flow during its 134 years. Martin Luther King Jr, the civil rights leader, often preached here. Now its pastor, Raphael Warnock, has added a new chapter by becoming the first African American senator from Georgia.

The storied church was firmly closed as votes were tallied on Tuesday night and its doors were plastered with coronavirus warnings, but there was a palpable surge outside as expectation turned to elation.

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Democrats’ Georgia success reshapes US political landscape

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Projected election victories will give Biden a majority in the Senate and were built on a revamped strategy and organisational effort

The US state of Georgia on Wednesday afternoon looked set to present an early inauguration gift to Joe Biden, giving him a decent shot at breaking Washington gridlock and enacting his agenda.

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‘I’ll be for you’: Jon Ossoff thanks Georgia as election draws to close – video

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The Democratic candidate has given a speech thanking the people of Georgia for electing him to the US Senate before the final tally is formally announced.

In his speech, Jon Ossoff asked the country to unite to beat the coronavirus pandemic and said he would fight both for people who voted for him and those who did not in the second of two runoff elections in Georgia

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Why Raphael Warnock was elected Georgia’s first black US senator

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Analysis: Political rise of preacher who took up mantle of earlier civil rights activists has coincided with changes in state

When Raphael Warnock was born, the state of Georgia was represented in the Senate by two segregationists – one of them, Herman Talmadge, a southern Democrat who opposed civil rights legislation in the 1960s.

Today, Warnock, a senior preacher at the Ebenezer Baptist church, where Martin Luther King Jr once preached, has been elected the first African American Democratic senator from a formerly Confederate state.

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‘I will fight for you’: Democrat Raphael Warnock declares victory in Georgia Senate runoff – video

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Shortly after midnight, Rev Raphael Warnock delivered a message of hope to Georgians and declared his win in the Senate runoff election: 'Whether you voted for me or not – know this: I see you. I hear you. And I will fight for you.' He beat Republican incumbent Kelly Loeffler, a Trump loyalist. This is the first time for 24 years that a Democrat will represent Georgia in the Senate

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Georgia Senate runoffs: Democrat Raphael Warnock wins against Kelly Loeffler

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Democrats within striking distance of taking control of the upper chamber in triumph that marks dramatic moment in American politics

Raphael Warnock, the senior pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta where Martin Luther King once preached, has won one of the two runoff elections for the US Senate in Georgia, putting the Democrats within striking distance of taking control of the upper chamber.

Warnock’s victory over the ultra-Trump loyalist Kelly Loeffler was called by Associated Press just after 2am. It solidifies the astonishing transformation that has seen Georgia reshape itself from a southern Republican stronghold into a diverse and increasingly progressive state, just two months after Joe Biden became the first Democratic presidential candidate to win there in almost three decades.

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Kenosha police officers will not be charged in the shooting of Jacob Blake, prosecutor says – live

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Shortly before polls are set to close in Georgia, Barack Obama offered this reminder to voters: if you are in line at a polling place by 7 pm ET, do not leave.

Georgia voters—If you're in line before the polls close at 7 pm, stay there. You have the right to vote, no matter how long it takes. If you have questions, call the Georgia voter protection hotline at 1-888-730-5816. Let's bring this home.

That’s all from me today. I’m handing over to my colleague Joan E Greve, who will be with you as the polls close in Georgia and throughout the evening. Here’s a rundown of the day’s biggest stories so far:

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Georgia voters head to polls in critical Senate runoffs

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More than 3 million people voted early, a record for a runoff election, with significant numbers in Democratic-leaning areas

Georgia voters headed to the polls on Tuesday for the final day of voting in a critical election that will determine which party controls the US Senate and what Joe Biden can achieve in the first two years of his presidency.

After she cast her ballot on the chilly morning in Atlanta, Stephanie Aluko stood outside her polling place and noted how remarkable it was that the entire world was paying attention to her state.

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Trump call to Georgia secretary of state electrifies voters in Senate runoffs

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Some voters not surprised by president’s call but expressed uncertainty over how it would impact the race

An explosive recording of Donald Trump pressuring Georgia election officials to overturn the election results is further electrifying voters in Georgia’s elections for two US Senate seats, in Tuesday’s runoff that will determine which party controls Congress’ upper chamber.

In the call, made public by the Washington Post on Sunday, Trump pressured Georgia’s Republican secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, to “find 11,780 votes”, to overturn Trump’s loss there. When Raffensperger refused, Trump suggested he and his aides may be committing a criminal offense.

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‘One state can chart the course’: Biden rallies in Georgia on eve of Senate runoffs

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President-elect speaks at Atlanta rally alongside Democratic candidates Jon Ossoff and the Rev Raphael Warnock

Joe Biden urged Georgia voters to surprise the nation once again by sending two Democrats to the US Senate, on the eve of a pair of critical runoff elections that will determine the balance of power in Washington and the scope of the president-elect’s ambitious legislative agenda.

Biden, speaking at a drive-in rally in downtown Atlanta alongside the Democratic candidates Jon Ossoff and the Rev Raphael Warnock on Monday afternoon, did not mention Donald Trump’s increasingly brazen efforts to overturn the results of the November election, which escalated this weekend when the president pressured Georgia’s secretary of state to “find” enough votes to reverse his defeat in the state. Instead, he focused on what Democrats could accomplish with control of the Senate.

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Republicans divided: Trump creates new splits as party frets about Georgia

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The president’s baseless claims have pleased some in the party but turned off others, which does not bode well for the runoff results

Donald Trump has been marking the final days of his presidency by creating new fissures within the Republican party, at a time when the GOP needs to unify if it is to win two races in Georgia, which will decide control of the Senate.

Related: Trump's Republicans have dumped Lincoln – they're the Confederacy now | Lloyd Green

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Georgia official suggests Trump could face criminal inquiry over ‘find votes’ demand – live

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The Guardian’s Stephanie Kirchgaessner reports:

David Perdue, the Georgia Republican facing a Senate runoff election on Tuesday, has twice bought a significant number of shares in a US bank shortly after meeting with financial policy makers, raising more questions about his prolific stock trading while in office.

Related: Revealed: David Perdue bought bank stocks after meeting financial officials

DC mayor Muriel Bowser urged residents to avoid downtown in the next couple of days, as the city prepares for pro-Trump demonstrations in connection to Congress’ electoral vote count on Wednesday.

The Democratic mayor said at a press conference today, “We will not allow people to incite violence, intimidate our residents or cause destruction in our city.”

[Bowser] urged calm Monday as some 340 National Guard troops were being activated while the city prepared for potentially violent protests surrounding Congress’ expected vote to affirm President-elect Joe Biden’s victory.

According to a U.S. defense official, [Bowser] put in a request on New Year’s Eve to have Guard members on the streets from Jan. 5-7th, to help with the protests. The official said the D.C. National Guard members will be used for traffic control and other assistance but they will not be armed or wearing body armor. ...

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Kamala Harris says Trump’s call to Georgia secretary of state is ‘bold abuse of power’ – video

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The US vice-president-elect said a phone call made by Donald Trump to Georgia's secretary of state in which he asked to reverse his 3 November election defeat is a 'bold abuse of power'.

Speaking at a rally in Savannah on Sunday, Harris said the call was 'the voice of desperation'.

The Washington Post obtained the recording of a conversation on Saturday between Trump and Brad Raffensperger.

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Trump’s phone call to Brad Raffensperger: six key points

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Conversation between president and Georgia’s secretary of state laid bare Trump’s determination to cling on to power

Donald Trump has been recorded pressuring Georgia’s secretary of state to overturn US president-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the state, in a tape obtained by the Washington Post.

The conversation is mainly between Trump and Brad Raffensperger, Georgia’s Republican secretary of state, but Trump allies including Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff, and attorney Cleta Mitchell were also present, as was Ryan Germany, Raffensperger’s general counsel. Here are the main points:

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‘I just want 11,780 votes’: Trump pressed Georgia to overturn Biden victory

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In an hour-long phone call on Saturday, Donald Trump pressed Georgia secretary of state Brad Raffensperger to overturn Joe Biden’s victory there in the election the president refuses to concede.

Related: Healthcare to the electoral college: seven ways 2020 left America exposed | Robert Reich

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Biden seeks term-defining wins in Georgia runoffs Trump called ‘illegal’

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Contests will decide control of Senate and how far Biden can reach on issues such as pandemic, healthcare, taxation and environment

Campaigning continued in Georgia on Saturday in two Senate runoff elections which will define much of Joe Biden’s first term in office.

Related: Biden wants to fill federal court seats – but he needs to win the Senate first

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Biden and Harris to campaign in Georgia as Trump calls on its governor to quit

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Democrats and Republicans are deploying their big guns for the state’s runoff elections that will decide who controls the Senate

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will travel to Georgia to campaign for next week’s high-stakes Senate runoff elections, it was announced on Wednesday, as Donald Trump called on the state’s Republican governor, Brian Kemp, to resign.

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Democrats in Georgia’s runoff elections raise more than $200m in two months

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Races will decide which party controls the Senate and, in turn, the legislative power of President-elect Joe Biden

Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, both running for crucial US Senate seats in Georgia that will decide the fate of Joe Biden’s new administration, have raised over $100m each in just two months.

The announcement of the recent record-breaking hauls – which considerably exceed that of their Republican opponents – comes with less than two weeks to go until the runoff races are decided in special elections on 5 January.

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Biden campaigns for Georgia Senate Democrats following electoral college victory

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Biden supports Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, who face Republican senators in January runoff elections

Joe Biden was in Georgia on Tuesday campaigning for the Democrats in crucial Senate runoff elections, a day after addressing the American public for the first time as its official president-elect.

Related: Biden should get Covid vaccine soon as possible for ‘security reasons’, Fauci says

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Georgia Republican senator had ‘no idea’ she posed with neo-Nazi

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Kelly Loeffler spokesman disavows photo of her posing with white supremacist Chester Doles at campaign event

The campaign of the Georgia Republican senator Kelly Loeffler is disavowing a photo circulating on social media of her posing with a longtime white supremacist at a recent campaign event, with less than a month to go until the runoff elections that will determine the balance of the US Senate.

Loeffler did not know who Chester Doles was when she took a picture with him, her campaign spokesman, Stephen Lawson, said on Sunday. The picture was taken on Friday at a campaign event in Dawsonville, Georgia.

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