(New: Reaction Trump)
ATLANTA (dpa-AFX) – With the victory of the US Democrats in a runoff election for the last open Senate seat, ex-President Donald Trump suffered another bitter defeat. Barely a month following the US congressional elections, President Joe Biden’s Democratic Party succeeded in expanding its majority in the Senate on Tuesday (local time). Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock defeated Republican challenger Herschel Walker in the Georgia runoff. For Biden, the result is a win. Republican Trump, who wants to return to office in 2024 and supported Walker, has suffered a defeat.
Things are not going well for Trump
Trump announced three weeks ago that he wanted to take over the White House once more for the Republicans. The 76-year-old announced his plan shortly following his party had performed surprisingly poorly in the “Midterms” – and candidates sponsored by Trump in particular failed. Walker was now the last Trump protégé in this line. “Our country is in big trouble. What a mess,” he wrote following the election on “Truth Social”. The result is particularly unpleasant for him, because things are not going well for the Republican at the moment.
The Republican recently hit the headlines for having dinner with rapper Kanye West. West spreads anti-Semitic conspiracy theories and brought along racist and anti-democrat Nick Fuentes. Trump came under pressure to justify himself. And just on Tuesday, Trump’s real estate group in New York was found guilty of tax fraud. Although Trump was not personally accused, the verdict is still bitter for him.
At the same time, Trump is struggling with various legal problems – at the forefront the investigation into top-secret government documents that he had stashed away at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. It remains to be seen whether all of this will ultimately do him any lasting damage in his candidacy for the White House. What is certain, however, is that his influence in the party has already waned and challengers are in the starting blocks.
Tight race in Georgia
In Georgia, incumbent Warnock (53), a black pastor, and former football star Walker (60), also black, faced each other. In the first attempt at the beginning of November, both remained just under 50 percent. According to the electoral law of the state in the south, a runoff election was necessary. Because of the outstanding importance for the power structure in the Senate, well-known politicians from both parties got involved in the election campaign.
Re-elected Senator Warnock said following his success: “After a hard fought election campaign, it is my honor to utter the four most powerful words there is to say in a democracy: the people have spoken.” In contrast to ex-President Trump, who to this day keeps telling stories regarding electoral fraud without any evidence of electoral fraud, Walker admitted defeat. The Republican appealed to his supporters: “Keep believing in our elected officials. And always, always cast your vote – no matter what.”
Victory in Georgia important for Democrats
The Democrats had done surprisingly well in the congressional elections in November and already secured 50 of the 100 seats in the Senate – and with it once once more control of the important congressional chamber. That’s because Democratic US Vice President Kamala Harris – who is also President of the Senate – is allowed to vote in a stalemate. Now the Democrats have 51 seats in the chamber – a slightly more comfortable majority.
The first half of Biden’s tenure has shown just how important a 51st seat can be. In particular, two senators from his own ranks made life difficult for Biden in the first two years and blocked several of his projects. In particular, the Democrat Joe Manchin repeatedly stood in the way. With the 51st seat, the Democrats can no longer be slowed down, at least by Manchin alone.
The 51st seat also has implications for the balance of power in key Senate committees. The Senate plays an important role in the US political system. The President can do little without him. The appointment of high-ranking government officials, judges or members of the central bank, as well as ambassadors, must be approved by the Senate.
“It just gives us a boost,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Wednesday, speaking of a “great feeling, excitement, unity, encouragement.” He also wanted to reach out to the Republicans. Not all of them are extreme Trump supporters.
Biden can breathe easy
Biden was pleased with the result in Georgia. “Tonight Georgia voters stood up for our democracy,” he wrote. The voters sent a “good man” back to the Senate and also rejected “Ultra-MAGAism”. MAGA stands for Trump’s campaign motto: “Make America Great Again”.
However, the president did not appear in Georgia during the campaign before the run-off election – with his low popularity ratings, an appearance for Warnock would have been political ballast. Instead, the popular ex-President Obama came to Georgia. There in the south, the proportion of black voters is higher than in many other states. The victory in the Georgia election nevertheless strengthens Biden. The 80-year-old recently said that he wanted to announce early next year whether he would run once more as a presidential candidate in 2024 – or not. Observers assume that he should throw his hat in the ring once more./trö/DP/mis
