As Loeffler and Perdue concede Senate races, when will Ossoff and Warnock head to DC?
The elections are called, and their opponents have conceded. The next task for Senators-elect Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff: getting sworn into office.
The Democrats defeated Republican incumbents Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue in Georgia’s twin U.S. Senate runoffs Jan. 5, effectively flipping the Senate blue for President-elect Joe Biden. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will have the tie-breaking vote if senators vote along party lines.
Warnock and Ossoff will be able to take their seats in the chamber once Georgia election officials certify the results of the runoffs. State officials have a deadline of Jan. 22.
It will be the first time since 2003 that both of Georgia’s U.S. Senators are Democrats.
Republicans concede
Loeffler, who will serve in the chamber until Warnock is sworn-in, issued her concession statement Thursday night — one day after the Associated Press declared Warnock the victor. In her remarks, Loeffler congratulated and wished her opponent well. As of Friday afternoon, Warnock led by more than 83,000 votes and is above the 0.5% recount threshold.
“Rest assured: the fight to advance the American Dream is far from over. The fight to protect conservative values is far from over. And the fight against socialism and the radical agenda of the Left is very far from over,” Loeffler said in a statement.
Perdue conceded Friday afternoon. In an emailed statement from his campaign, the former senator congratulated “the Democratic Party and my opponent,” but did not address Ossoff by name. As of Friday afternoon, Ossoff led by nearly 45,000 votes and will avoid a recount.
“Serving our home state has been the honor of a lifetime, and I am very proud of how our team in Georgia and Washington, D.C. fought every day to deliver real results for all eleven million Georgians,” a portion of Perdue’s statement reads.
When will Ossoff, Warnock be sworn-in?
The swearing-in of Georgia’s newest senators will depend on the pace of county and state election officials. Election results must be certified before Ossoff and Warnock take their seats at the nation’s capital.
Per Georgia law, counties have until the second Friday following election day to certify their tallies. For the January runoffs, that date falls on Jan. 15 The Secretary of State’s office must certify statewide results by Jan. 22. The process could move quicker if county election officials provide their official numbers to the state earlier. Friday, Jan. 8 was the deadline for military and overseas ballots to arrive if they were postmarked by Election Day. Issues with absentee ballots had to be fixed by Jan. 8.
Depending on the timeline, Ossoff and Warnock may not be in D.C. if Democrats move to impeach President Donald Trump after a mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol, sparring with police and interrupting the certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s electoral college victory. CNN reports the House Democrats could move as early as the middle of this week.
With their victories, Warnock and Ossoff made history. Warnock becomes the first Black senator to represent the state of Georgia. He’ll be up for reelection in 2022. Ossoff becomes the first Jewish senator for Georgia. He’ll be up for reelection in 2026.
This story was originally published January 8, 2021 at 4:19 PM with the headline "As Loeffler and Perdue concede Senate races, when will Ossoff and Warnock head to DC?."