Washington. – Georgia on my mind, escrita por Hoagy Carmichael in 1930 and popularized by decades later Ray Charles, is the official song of the state Georgia. At the moment, it is also the exact answer to the question of what concerns Americans at the beginning of 2021: the entire political future of the country will run through Georgia.
Georgia was one southern state to which no federal elections I watched him. Considered one of the strongest Republican strongholds, everything was turned upside down in November. Joe Biden he managed to win the state in presidential elections, something a Democrat had not achieved since 1992, with less than 12,000 votes. The last Democratic senator from Georgia left his post in 2005. Since then, the Republican walk through the state has been vigorous, controlling all of that entity’s organs of power.
A turnaround in this design cannot be understood without the figure of Stacey Abrams, leader of the party in the area and the flag of an unprecedented turnaround that, in essence and much simplification, devoted itself to fighting the policies of suppressing the vote for the population – primarily African American – and the mobilization of voters, taking advantage of the demographic changes they favor democrats.
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“Now things are looking better for Democrats than ever could have been predicted from historical history,” said the political scientist. Bernard Fraga, from Emory University, to the Associated Press, pointing out that the key, as almost always with these types of election contests, will be the rate of attendance, and whether the number of voters going to vote is enough for the Democrats to get the result for them is favorable.
Remarkably, this election cycle Georgia had two seats free in the Senate, both controlled by Republicans: David Perdue, which are mandate and that of Kelly Loeffler, put in the position by the governor of the state after the retirement of the previous owner.
An anomalous situation that was resolved by calling the contenders for extra time: in the first round, no one got more than 50% of the vote, so they were called up for this second round, which not only brings two winners to two seats in the Senate: it is determined which party the High camera and, restore, what kind of presidency can Biden have, at least in the early part of his tenure.
Right now, the Senate balance is 50-48 in favor of the Republicans, pending the resolution in Georgia. Democrats must necessarily win the two races on January 5 to have a miniscule majority and with the minimum: the tie at 50 that would result from a win in both elections would be undone by the quality vote of the president of the Senate, which would not happen unlike the future vice president Kamala Harris.
Republicans are campaigning under the slogan, “Defend the Majority,” embracing the remaining power gap: By retaining control of the Senate, they can have the final say in any legislative action they take from the White House, and even the power to veto cabinet members and proposals for vacancies in the judicial system. A force that would turn Mitch McConnell, the conservative leader in the Senate, one of the most important men in Washington, almost at the height of the president.
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The Democratsfor their part, they strive for a historic turnaround by two candidates who, in a highly calculated strategy, campaign together. Jon Ossoff and Raphael WarnockRivals of Perdue and Loeffler respectively know that winning is a matter of life and death, it is not worth them with a partial victory: it is all or nothing.
Raphael Warnock, Georgia Senate candidate at a meeting in LaGrange. The second round of the elections is central. Photo: AP.
Neither side is leaving anything in the pipeline, and economic investment numbers are stratospheric. For days, more than $ 500 million is exceeded in advertising and propaganda, and the money raised by each candidate is more than or nearly a hundred million dollars.
Normally, a second round mobilizes far fewer people than in the general election, but it is an exceptional moment U.S, the beginning of the post-Trump era and with the Senate at stake. Last Wednesday, more than 2.5 million people voted early (half of those who went to the polls in November), an unprecedented record.
A huge amount predicting a very slow recount and, more than likely, controversial. For Democrats, the high turnout bodes well, especially if the turnout rate for people of African descent and youth, the main demographic for their drive for victory, is maintained. “The intricacies of the second round is that it’s more about motivation than persuasion,” he recalls on the Vox portal. Stefan Turkheimer, Democratic strategist in the state.
Early December Trump He already went to Georgia to hold a rally in favor of his candidates, but he only dedicated himself to campaigning for his failed attempt to undermine the result of the presidential election he lost. The message that the elections have been faked and that the state governors (all Republicans) have helped this nonexistent fraud does not initially favor conservatives who trust the system and bet that they will vote.
The campaign that is not exempt from scandals, controversies and spectacle. The two Republican candidates, both loyal to Trump, have been investigated for financial maneuvers allegedly linked to classified information they had about the pandemic that made profits from the sale of shares; both were closed without any hard charge.
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Married to a billionaire, Loeffler has also faced a scandal over a photo with a KKK leader. Perdue, one of the richest senators in Congress, is also a relative of the government’s current Secretary of Agriculture.
Warnock, pastor at a church where he also served Martin Luther King and the only African American in the race, he sees his sermons being used against him to portray him as a radical; In addition, he has recently had an altercation with his ex-wife in the past. Ossoff, documentary maker and the youngest of the four, is accused of being a ‘socialist’ and close to the theses of the most progressive movements of the Democratic party, a toxic definition among moderate voters.
Perdue did not attend one of the debates, leaving his lectern and Ossoff debating the absence of his rival.
It is impossible to speculate on the outcome, as most polls bet on a technical minimum margin. But what’s at stake is so important that next Monday, both outgoing President Donald Trump and President-elect Joe Biden will be in Georgia to campaign for their candidates, hoping their stamp can scratch all possible votes and seduce. for a victory for his side in these very decisive elections.
An election that, if the scenario of November 3 is repeated, may not be decided until a few days later, once again testing the patience of voters and the institutional dislocation of the White House. just a few more days, Donald Trump orders.