Well people, against all odds it happened: Georgia has turned blue.
Yeah, I know, the Peach State turned blue when it handed President-elect Joe Biden his win over President-reject Donald Trump, but that shade of blue just got a little bit deeper now that Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff have both defeated their opponents in the Georgia Senate runoff elections.
NBC News projects that Ossoff has defeated Republican incumbent David Perdue, ensuring that the Biden administration will enter the White House knowing its party has control of the House, Senate and the executive branch.
From NBC:
The Senate will now be split 50-50, but Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will be able to cast tie-breaking votes, putting Democrats in charge of the legislative agenda, committee chairmanships and Congress’ confirmation and investigative powers.
“We proved that with hope, hard works and the people by our side, anything is possible,” Warnock told supporters Tuesday.
Biden and Senate Democratic leaders agree their top priority will be a new round of Covid-19 relief, especially after the president-elect promised Georgia voters this week that $2,000 stimulus checks would “go out the door immediately” if Democrats won the Senate.
“Georgia’s voters delivered a resounding message yesterday: they want action on the crises we face and they want it right now,” Biden said in a statement Wednesday. “I have long said that the bipartisan COVID-19 relief bill passed in December was just a down payment. We need urgent action on what comes next.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) will be replacing Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) as Senate majority leader. Schumer also responded to Ossoff’s win with a promise that 2021 and beyond will look a hell of a lot better than 2016 through 2020 with Democrats in control.
“As Majority Leader, President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris will have a partner who is ready, willing and able to help achieve a forward-looking agenda and deliver help and bold change to the American people,” Schumer said.
As for Ossoff, the 33-year-old senator-elect claimed his victory early Wednesday before it had been projected and thanked his supporters in a live stream video.
“Thank you so much for the confidence that you’ve placed in me,” Ossoff said. “I am honored, honored by your support, by your confidence by your trust, and I will look forward to serving you in the United States Senate with integrity with humility, with honor and getting things done for the people of Georgia.”