Midterm Elections

Early Voting Begins In Parts Of Georgia Ahead Of Crucial Senate Runoff

While Dems have Senate control with at least 50 seats, grabbing another would mean it wouldn't have to rely on the Vice President as a tiebreaker.

Early Voting Begins In Parts Of Georgia Ahead Of Crucial Senate Runoff
Newsy
Article by Stephanie Sandoval
SMS
November 26, 2022

Georgia voters are back at it again! After neither U.S. Senate candidate won a majority in the November midterm elections, calling for a rematch between Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock and Republican Senate candidate Herschel Walker.

Some counties in the state opened polls early on Saturday – after the Thanksgiving holiday – after Warnock's campaign and others argued voting should be allowed.

But the concern is over voter turnout, since the race won't determine which party controls the majority in the Senate. However, the stakes are still high.

While Democrats have Senate control with at least 50 seats, grabbing another seat would mean it wouldn't have to rely on Vice President Kamala Harris as a tiebreaker.

In one polling location – out of many throughout the state of Georgia where people can vote early – the line was pretty long, with people waiting for about 2 hours just to cast their vote; however, some said they were willing to wait.

Warnock, Walker Advance To Runoff For Senate Seat In Georgia

Warnock, Walker Advance To Runoff For Senate Seat In Georgia

A runoff means another month of Warnock hammering Walker as unqualified and Walker assailing Warnock as a rubber-stamp for the White House.

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"Waited 2 hours. It was worth the wait. You know, in time when you need when you need something important like this go on. You need to just wait," said Edward Tucker, a Georgia voter.

"I got here at 7:15am and it took me about 40 minutes to vote. My wife said she's going to sleep in and vote later and it's going to take her over 2 hours," said another Georgia voter, Arthur Ratliff.

Hundreds came out to vote despite the long wait.

"A lot of getting together and praying to make this day happen. It almost didn't happen," said Yvonne Spear, a Georgia voter.

One Georgia resident says she couldn't miss the opportunity and flew back home from New York just to cast her vote.

"What brought me out today is about change and the direction in which our country is heading. I feel that there's a lot of inequities, injustices, and we need to correct it. And the only way to correct that is at the polls," said Haven Wilson.

For many, it's about voting rights.

"We have a long history of voter suppression here. So even more so, me and all these other people are saying we need to come out to protect our voting rights," said Ratliff.

People in every county will be allowed to vote early starting Monday. The runoff election day is scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 6th.