- January 4, 2021
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Georgia polls will decide the controlling party in the US Senate
Listen to this articleThe Georgia Senate polls are tight in the 2 races and it will decide which party controls the upper chamber of Congress during the first years of the Biden administration. No candidate got 50% of the vote on 3rd November and both races are being run again on 5th January. Incumbent Republican Senator David Perdue is running for re-election against Democrat Jon Ossoff in a regularly scheduled election. Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler is facing off against Democrat Reverend Raphael Warnock in a special election. The US Senate is currently controlled by the Republican Party with 50 seats to the Democrats’ 48, so Democrats need to win both races to gain control. Both races are incredibly close with FiveThirtyEight putting Perdue at 47.6% to Ossoff’s 48.5%, and Warnock at 49.6% to Loeffler’s 47.6% in its polling averages as of 1st January.
Point to be noted that the RealClearPolitics polling average puts Ossoff ahead on 49.7% to Perdue’s 47.9%, and has Reverend Warnock ahead by 1.8 points on 49.8%, to Loeffler’s 48% as of 1st January. More than 2.34 million Georgians have already voted by 28th December. Joe Biden beat Donald Trump by 2,473,633 votes to 2,461,854 in the presidential election on 3rd November. It is the first time a Democrat has won Georgia since 1992. There are worries within the Republican Party that the president’s constant unfounded talk of electoral fraud and rigged ballots may discourage some of his supporters from participating. Both GOP candidates and their surrogates are therefore working hard to get out the vote to counter this possibility.
Democrats, however, are hammering home the message to their supporters that the success of the incoming Biden presidency may hinge on being able to pass legislation quickly and cleanly through both chambers of Congress. Draftkings Nation has translated wagers from overseas into Moneyline odds while betting on elections is not allowed in the US (with a few exceptions). It offered bets with a minus sign cost that much to win $100 and those with a plus sign pay that amount if someone wagers $100 and also refund the original stake. Betfair currently has Perdue on -189 and Ossoff on +138; and Loeffler on -149 and Warnock on +110. Ladbrokes has Perdue on -200 and Ossoff on +150; and Loeffler on -189 and Warnock on +138. These are big leads for the Republican candidates and enthusiasm still could favor the Democrats.
