With wins in both of the Georgia runoff races, Democrats would gain control of the U.S. Senate.
Perhaps never before has a runoff election garnered such interest across the nation, but the stakes have never been higher for one, either. That's why so many Hollywood celebrities stayed up into the wee hours of the morning as votes were counted in Georgia.
The special runoff election was triggered by state laws requiring a special election when no candidate earns more than 50 percent of the vote. That happened in both Senatorial races during the 2020 election.
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View StoryWhat suddenly made it incredibly important for both parties is what became at stake after all the other races were settled. Suddenly, these two seats were poised to determine which party had control of the Senate.
This after Democrats had claimed both the presidency and held onto control of the House of Representatives. Either they gained full control of the legislature, or Republicans maintain some checks on President-Elect Biden's political agenda with continued control of the Senate.
Biden had already flipped the state blue in the presidential election, but could two newcomers unseat the Republican incumbents? As the night progressed, it looked like that was just what was going to happen.
If both Democrats won their seats, they would secure 50 seats in the Senate. And with incoming Vice President Kamala Harris casting any deciding votes, that would effectively give the Democratic party control of the Senate, allowing Biden to put forth his agenda almost unfettered.
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View StoryFirst among those edicts is a move to up the recent $600 payment to American citizens to $2,000 amid the ongoing economic crisis spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic.
As the night progressed, CNN first predicted that Rev. Raphael Warnock had unseated incumbent Kelly Loeffler, becoing the state's first-ever Black Senator. Shortly thereafter, Jon Ossoff took a lead in the count against incumbent David Perdue -- and then began expanding that lead.
But while no major news outlets were quite ready to call that race during the overnight hours, that didn't stop the stars from coming out in jubilation and excitement at what they were certain was about to be a huge Democratic win on the night.
And while they were excited to tout the seismic shift that was poised to happen in Washington, they also took the time to thank Stacey Abrams for her tireless efforts in Georgia to get out the vote once again (she is largely considered a pivotal figure in the state flipping blue for Biden).
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View StoryAll of y’all saying Democrats rigged this runoff election are HILARIOUS. You know the Governor of GA is a Republican, right? Same goes for the Secretary of State. And yet Dems somehow managed to successfully rig the election yet didn’t think to do so back in November? GTFOH. 🤣
— Tiya Sircar (She/Her) (@tiyasircar) January 6, 2021 @tiyasircar
Thank you @staceyabrams for your tireless hard work. We never could have gotten here without you. We hope to meet you one day so we can thank you in person. You’re welcome at any A&A show in the future!!!! You are a hero😩💓.....also for anyone who’s not quite sure, see below pic.twitter.com/sNyEbiIKxA
— Aly & AJ (@alyandaj) January 6, 2021 @alyandaj
Over the last four years, Republicans lost the presidency, the House and the Senate. Looks like Trump made America great again after all. #MAGA
— Billy Corben (@BillyCorben) January 6, 2021 @BillyCorben
Thank you isn’t enough but THANK YOU @staceyabrams @fairfightaction @NewGAProject @nseufot @BlackVotersMtr @GeorgiaDemocrat and every person on the ground in GA who made this happen. Forever in your debt. ❤️🙏
— billy eichner (@billyeichner) January 6, 2021 @billyeichner
What this woman has done for her country must never be forgotten. https://t.co/K97tbNoMAM
— dan levy (@danjlevy) January 6, 2021 @danjlevy
We all must thank @staceyabrams & her team at @fairfightaction & all the other tireless, incredibly effective activists who’ve turned the tide in Georgia over these past couple of years. The future isn’t given to us; it must be earned. And they’ve earned the hell out of it.
— Anthony Rapp Voted for Biden Black Lives Matter (@albinokid) January 6, 2021 @albinokid
Mood. 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🗳 #Georgia pic.twitter.com/Nm70vu7PNG
— Holly Robinson Peete😷🥰 (@hollyrpeete) January 6, 2021 @hollyrpeete
Thank you Georgia.
— Debra Messing✍🏻 (@DebraMessing) January 6, 2021 @DebraMessing
Thank you Black voters.
Thank you Latino voters.
Thank you AAPI voters.
When we vote, we win. 🍊🇺🇸 https://t.co/9aEGZIzHLt
Whatever the final outcome, thank you to the courageous Democratic voters of Georgia.
— AlecBaldwin(HABF) (@AlecBaldwin) January 6, 2021 @AlecBaldwin
Thank you @staceyabrams ! @BlackVotersMtr @fairfightaction @MeidasTouch @marceelias @ProjectLincoln and all of the volunteers who worked so hard on this Georgia election!
— Patricia Arquette (@PattyArquette) January 6, 2021 @PattyArquette
Don’t ever forget who flipped Georgia blue. pic.twitter.com/kfBnbvKh6S
— Aimee Carrero (@aimeecarrero) January 6, 2021 @aimeecarrero
YES LORD!!! THANK YOU GOD!!! THANK YOU @STACEYABRAMS, YOU ARE A FORCE!!! THANK YOU @fairfightaction and @faircount!!! THANK YOU GEORGIA!!! 🍑🙏🏾 https://t.co/xEHzCFIrGJ
— Naomi Campbell (@NaomiCampbell) January 6, 2021 @NaomiCampbell
#Abrams4AG pic.twitter.com/juaH6VNCqN
— Greg Grunberg 🍑🍑🍑🍑 (@greggrunberg) January 6, 2021 @greggrunberg
GEORGIA PEACHES SAID PACK YOUR BOXES LOSING PIGGIES@realDonaldTrump @Mike_Pence @KLoeffler @sendavidperdue @senatemajldr (minority puffy neck)@iamrapaport stays disruptive at https://t.co/Q8XeE6KyIf pic.twitter.com/TaxjGFWjcQ
— MichaelRapaport (@MichaelRapaport) January 6, 2021 @MichaelRapaport
The misogynist, racist President and his cowardly accomplices in Georgia were beaten in no small part because of Stacey Abrams’ and others’, voter registration efforts. And now, a Black man from Martin Luther King’s & John Lewis’ Church is heading to the Senate. Karma is a bitch.
— Ana Navarro-Cárdenas (@ananavarro) January 6, 2021 @ananavarro
*@staceyabrams I’m going to give you thee BIGGEST hug when we meet (and when it’s safe). You are an anomaly. You are amazing. May God continue to bless you and all that you do. Wow.
— Tichina Arnold (@TichinaArnold) January 6, 2021 @TichinaArnold
Thanks to the mighty @staceyabrams 🖖🏾 pic.twitter.com/DAkHWV6Tqp
— Jonathan Frakes (@jonathansfrakes) January 6, 2021 @jonathansfrakes
if its actually true and we taken both seats in Georgia ...we may see some real change soon ...McConnell was the key log in the jam
— David Crosby (@thedavidcrosby) January 6, 2021 @thedavidcrosby
Stacey Abrams
— Richard Schiff (@Richard_Schiff) January 6, 2021 @Richard_Schiff
should be Time’s Person of the Year! https://t.co/y8qTrPhz0S
God bless @staceyabrams and every person and organization that worked the ground game in Georgia. And thank you Georgia!
— jason alexander (@IJasonAlexander) January 6, 2021 @IJasonAlexander
Gratitude to all the activists the organizers and volunteers who’ve worked so hard to help make history tonight God Bless America and Stacey Abrams 🇺🇸 now the real work begins. 😷😷✊🏿🏳️🌈💙👏👏
— ✌🏼rosanna arquette (@RoArquette) January 6, 2021 @RoArquette
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