The Story:
Due to a quirk of history, each of Georgia’s two seats in the US Senate is up for grabs this year. The more dramatic of the two races is a free-for-all (there were no party primaries) that involves Doug Collins (R), Raphael Warnock (D), Matt Lieberman (D), and incumbent Kelly Loeffler (R). At present, Collins has a comfortable lead, but he looks unlikely to command a majority. If no one receives a majority of the votes, there will be a run-off election between the top two. So, assuming the Collins lead holds up: who would come in second?
Background:
Collins is quite conservative — the American Conservative Union gave him a 91% evaluation in 2017 — and he was a staunch defender of President Trump during the deliberations over impeachment.
The Thing to Know:
The second place figure in the recent polls is Ralph Warnock (D), senior pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. In 2018, after reports that President Trump had used a crude disparaging term about African countries, it was Warnock who replied, “Africa is the reason why America is already great.” Should this hold up, should the run-off be between Collins and Warnock, given the diametrical opposition of their social philosophies, fireworks are bound to ensue.
