CNN
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The fight for control of the US Senate could end up back in Georgia.
For the second time in less than two years, the Peach State, which elected two Democratic senators in the last election cycle, is the scene of a contest that has gripped both national parties and may hold the key to the fate of President Joe Biden’s agenda.
This time, however, at least one key feature of the race has been reversed: Democrat Raphael Warnock has risen from challenger to incumbent, trying to fend off Republican nominee Herschel Walker. The former football great, who was recruited and backed by former President Donald Trump, has campaigned unevenly and has been plagued by controversy for the past month but is still neck and neck with Warnock, with early voting in full swing and Election Day drawing nearer .
A Warnock win would likely thwart the Republican path to a majority in the Senate, currently split 50-50, with Vice President Kamala Harris casting a decisive vote. That reality, coupled with headwinds — in the form of economic fear and Biden’s low approval ratings — familiar to Democrats across the country, has helped unite Republicans behind Walker.
Former Vice President Mike Pence underscored his party’s mix of ambivalence and political practicality after failing to mention Walker during his speech at a rally in Cumming, Ga. for GOP Gov. Brian Kemp on Tuesday, telling reporters he supports “that.” Whole (Republican). ) ticket here in Georgia.”
The most recent New York Times and Siena College poll found no clear leader, with 49% of likely voters supporting Warnock while 46% support Walker — a difference well within the poll’s margin of error. Another Fox News poll in late October also found remarkably tight competition, with Warnock accounting for 44% and Walker at 43%. If neither candidate achieves a majority of the votes, the race would be decided in a December 6 runoff.
Walker, whose candidacy has suffered a spate of political derailments, recently faced allegations from two women who say he pressured them into having abortions. Walker has denied the allegations and CNN has not independently confirmed them. But the women’s demands run counter to the candidate’s earlier pronouncements for a full federal abortion ban with no exceptions. (More recently, he has retracted those comments and said he supports Georgia’s law, which bans abortions after about six weeks but makes exceptions for cases of rape or incest pending a timely police report, and in some cases where the health of the pregnant person is endangered.)
Warnock, meanwhile, initially tried not to address the controversy directly. But late last month, he launched a TV ad titled “Hypocrite.”
“For you, Herschel Walker wants to ban abortion,” says a narrator, before playing out comments the Republican made about not endorsing exceptions to a national abortion ban. “But for himself,” the narrator then asks, before playing news reports on the allegations.
Warnock’s play to undecided voters and moderates focused on his efforts to expand access to health care – he often cites his work on cutting insulin costs – along with his bipartisan record in the Senate.
“I will work with anyone if it means helping Georgia,” he says in another ad, hammering out a message the senior pastor of Atlanta’s historic Ebenezer Baptist Church repeats at rallies and in his lone debate with the Republican Has.
But with rising inflation worries and Biden’s unpopularity, he’s kept the president at arm’s length. Instead, former President Barack Obama was the Democrats’ pick to empower Georgia voters — and bring a hard case against Walker.
“There is very little evidence that he has shown any interest, has made the effort to learn about public service or volunteering, or has shown any inclination towards public service or volunteering, or has helped people in any way,” Obama said last week at a rally for Warnock in College over Walker Park.
Walker’s campaign has delved heavily into culture war rhetoric, along with criticism of inflation and crime rates under Biden, whom he wanted to tie as closely to Warnock as possible.
“For those of you who are concerned about voting for me as a non-politician,” Walker said during her debate, “I want you to consider the damage that politicians like Joe Biden and Raphael Warnock have done to this country.”
