Democrat Jon Ossoff claims victory over David Perdue in Georgia runoff

Democrat Jon Ossoff claimed victory over Republican David Perdue in Georgia Wednesday morning as he held a slight lead of about 16,000 votes in a race that was still too close for major news organisations to call.

“It is with humility that I thank the people of Georgia for electing me to serve you in the United States Senate,” Ossoff said in a video statement.

“Everybody who cast your ballot, everybody who put your faith in confidence in our democracy’s capacity to deliver the representation that we deserve — whether you were for me or against me, I’ll be for you in the U.S. Senate,” he said. “I will serve all the people of the state.”

Democrats have already captured one of Georgia’s two US Senate seats as Raphael Warnock defeated Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler in one of the runoff races, according to the Associated Press. As vote counting was continuing Wednesday, Ossoff held a lead of about 16,000 votes over Perdue, a former corporate executive and one-term senator. Some of the outstanding votes yet to be counted are coming from heavily Democrat precincts. But it could take days to get the final tally, as 17,000 military and overseas ballots can still be counted as late as Friday, and some absentee ballots were still out.

Two Democratic victories in Georgia would flip control of the Senate to Democrats. The chamber would be split 50-50 between Republicans and the Democratic caucus, with ­President-elect Kamala Harris casting tie-breaking votes. Senate control, paired with the Democrats’ narrow majority in the House, would give President-elect Joe Biden a unified US government.

Crowds build in DC before final election rite

More than a thousand people gathered at a park south of the White House before dawn on Wednesday to rally in support of President Donald Trump ahead of a congressional ceremony that will seal Joe Biden’s victory in the November election.

With results from two run-off elections in Georgia suggesting Democrats may retake the Senate, and Congress set to affirm Biden’s win at the event starting at 1 pm local time, tensions are high in the US capital. Leaning on debunked theories of a rigged vote, Trump has called on his supporters to “stop the steal” and make a stand for his presidency. At least three separate pro-Trump rallies are expected in Washington, and many local businesses boarded up their doors and windows in anticipation of possible violence. Bloomberg