Stimulus vote interrupts Georgia runoff campaign
As lawmakers in Washington rush to pass a $900 billion stimulus plan to offer relief to millions of Americans dealing with the impact of the coronavirus, the campaigns fighting for the final two seats in the US Senate have been forced to reshuffle a busy day on the trail in Georgia.
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris was scheduled to hold two events in the state in support of Democratic candidates Jon Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock: a get-out-the-vote event in Gwinnett County outside of Atlanta before a drive-in car rally in Columbus, Georgia. Harris, who is still a member of the Senate, was forced to cancel the event in Gwinnett and adjust the timing of the rally in Columbus. The Democratic campaigns moved up the timing of the rally in order for her to be back in Washington to vote.
On the other side of the state, incumbent Republican Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler had three planned events with Ivanka Trump in Milton, Gwinnett and Walton counties. The trio will still appear together at an event at noon ET in Milton, but they have postponed the two other events so Perdue and Loeffler can return to Washington.
Trump, the daughter of President Donald Trump and one of his special advisers, is a popular GOP surrogate. Perdue and Loeffler have run campaigns close to the President in an effort to keep his passionate base of support engaged in the runoff election. Ivanka Trump, like her father as well as Perdue and Loeffler, has yet to acknowledge that Joe Biden won the November election. They also have refused to refer to Biden as the president-elect.
Last week, Loeffler left open the possibility that she may object to the results of the Electoral College vote when it is brought to Congress on January 6. Perdue has yet to say what role he will play on that day; his term ends on January 3 and the results of the runoff will not be certified by January 6, so it is unclear who — if anyone — will be occupying that Senate seat when Congress takes up the Electoral College vote.
Biden stumped for the Democratic candidates last week. Trump was in Georgia at the beginning of December and has promised to return for another rally on January 4, the night before Election Day.
