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- Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer took a victory lap on Wednesday morning after Democrats swept the Georgia runoffs.
- Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff defeated incumbent Republican Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, according to projections by Insider and Decision Desk HQ.
- The wins give Democrats control of the Senate for the first time in six years.
- “As Majority Leader, President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris will have a partner who is ready, willing and able to help achieve a forward-looking agenda and deliver help and bold change to the American people,” Schumer said.
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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer on Wednesday morning celebrated Democrats retaking the Senate after winning runoffs in Georgia.
“It feels like a brand new day,” the top Democrat of New York said. “For the first time in six years, Democrats will operate a majority in the United States Senate – and that will be very good for the American people.”
The victory statement comes after Democrats Rev. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff defeated incumbent Republican Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue in a special election late Tuesday, according to Insider and Decision Desk HQ. The wins make history: Warnock will become the first Black senator from Georgia in US history, and Ossoff the state’s first Jewish senator.
“We are grateful to everyone in Georgia and across the country who volunteered their time, donated what they could, and worked so hard to elect new leadership in Washington,” Schumer said. “I am so proud of both of their campaigns and excited to welcome them to the Senate.”
The Senate will now be evenly split 50-50, with Vice-President elect Kamala Harris as the tie-breaking vote. Albeit a slim one, Democrats had been vying to regain the majority, which will grant them a big opening to assist incoming President-elect Joe Biden in fulfilling more of his wide-ranging agenda, from tackling the coronavirus pandemic to climate change and racial justice. The 2020 election results give Democrats control of the House, Senate and the White House for the first time in a decade.
“America is experiencing one of the greatest crises we have ever faced, and the Senate Democratic Majority is committed to delivering the bold change and help Americans need and demand,” Schumer said. “Senate Democrats know America is hurting – help is on the way.”
As the top Democrat in the upper chamber, Schumer will likely become the next majority leader, demoting current Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to minority leader. The respective caucuses vote on these positions at the start of each Congress.
Schumer’s new title makes him the first Jewish lawmaker to become Senate majority leader in US history, and the first New Yorker to hold that post.
“As Majority Leader, President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris will have a partner who is ready, willing and able to help achieve a forward-looking agenda and deliver help and bold change to the American people,” Schumer said.
—Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) January 6, 2021
The upcoming shakeup in Washington, DC, comes as Congress is due for a joint session on Wednesday to finalize Biden’s 2020 victory. The electoral certification is expected to be filled with drama, as dozens of Republicans have pledged that they plan to object to the process – to the liking of President Donald Trump, who still has not acknowledged his election loss. However, the plan is virtually guaranteed to collapse and will not alter the outcome of the presidential race.
Trump on Wednesday morning continued to falsely claim that Vice President Mike Pence, who will preside over the certification process, has the power to challenge the election. He does not.
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