“Tonight, the people – young, black, brown and working class – expanded a majority in the Senate, neutralized the power of Joe Manchin and defeated yet another fascist,” cheered the Sunrise Movement.
Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock was declared the winner Tuesday night in Georgia’s US Senate runoff race against Republican challenger Herschel Walker, giving the incumbent’s party a 51-49 upper house lead and he helped temper the filibustering power of the Republican Party and right-wing Democrats like Joe from West Virginia. Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona.
“Democrats can do a lot more with 51 seats in the Senate.”
the Associated Press, nbc newsDecision Desk HQ, the Atlanta Journal-Constitutionand other outlets projected a Warnock victory as counted ballots from the heavily Democratic metro Atlanta area gave the incumbent a late surge of support over Walker, a former National Football League star backed by former President Donald Trump. .
“I have no doubt that Warnock will win. But 1.5 million people voting for Walker says a lot about the work that lies ahead,” former NAACP Legal Defense Fund President Sherrilyn Ifill. tweeted. “Buckle up, folks.”
“Tonight, the people (young, black, brown, and working class) expanded a Senate majority, neutralized the power of Joe Manchin and defeated another fascist,” the youth-led climate group Sunrise Movement. tweeted.
Thanks, Georgia. We did it again. pic.twitter.com/jikuO5Kt8S
— Reverend Raphael Warnock (@ReverendWarnock) December 7, 2022
Sunrise CEO Varshini Prakash said in a statement:
The truth is that young people win. Warnock’s strategy of investing heavily in young voters paid off because we organize, get the vote out, and consistently vote for Democrats who speak out about the issues we face every day. We know what’s at stake, from the climate crisis to getting guns out of schools…
This contest was dangerously close due to the local organizing power of the right. That is why we are standing up and fighting back. We are focusing the power of our winning movement on building long-term power from the ground up in communities across the country. We won’t give up until we win a Green New Deal.
Progressive economist and former US Secretary of Labor Robert Reich congratulated Warnock, “the people of Georgia and all who care to preserve and strengthen democracy.”
May Boeve, chief executive of climate group 350 Action, said in a statement that “the crucial Senate majority secured by Warnock’s victory will help key legislators implement real solutions and ensure that climate legislation like the Pollution Reduction Act inflation protect our communities from even more devastating climate change.” impacts.”
“Warnock’s victory also better protects the ability of climate champions to block new fossil fuel projects like Senator Manchin’s ‘Dirty Deal,’ which he continues to push,” Boeve added.
“With this final Senate race now decided, the midterm results send a clear and decisive message: we can and must move forward with the important work of advocating for bolder climate action. While a divided Congress poses some legislative challenges, voters have shown that climate is a priority for them and we have a clear opportunity to organize for our people and the climate.”
The nation editor Katrina vanden Heuvel noted in her congratulatory tweet that “Democrats can do a lot more with 51 seats in the Senate.”
Taking aim at Walker, a deeply concerned candidate with an admitted history of domestic violence, hypocritically pressuring several women for abortions and recently claiming permanent residence in Texas for a tax break, Rep. Mondaire Jones (DN.Y.) tweeted that “national Republicans handpicked an unqualified and morally bankrupt caricature to run for Senate in Georgia because they thought his race would be enough to make him competitive with black voters.”
“But we know when we are being sponsored,” Jones added. “Herschel Walker needed to be beaten.”
Common Dream’s work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License. Feel free to repost and share widely.