McConnell, Graham warn GOP Senate majority on the line in Georgia

Top Republicans are warning that GOP control of the Senate is coming down to two runoff elections expected early next year in Georgia.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), in separate press conferences Friday, warned it’s still unclear which party will control the Senate in 2021.

“I’m not certain I’m the majority leader yet. As you all may have noticed, that will be determined in Georgia,” McConnell told reporters in Kentucky.

“It makes a big difference who wins the two seats in Georgia. If the Democrats were to win the two seats, Chuck Schumer would be the majority leader,” McConnell added, noting that GOP losses in the runoffs would allow the New York Democrat to “decide what the agenda is.”

Graham, during a Zoom call with reporters, didn’t rule out campaigning in Georgia ahead of the Jan. 5 election there.

“The fate of the Senate now depends on Georgia. I like our chances in the runoffs,” Graham said.

Based on races that have been called so far, Republicans and Democrats are deadlocked at 48 seats each.

Besides Georgia, the two remaining uncalled races are expected to go toward Republicans.

In North Carolina, Sen. Thom Tillis (R) has had a small but steady lead, and officials in both parties acknowledge that Democratic nominee Cal Cunningham is unlikely to overcome his vote deficit. In Alaska, Sen. Dan Sullivan (R) is on pace to cruise to reelection.

Those two seats would put Republicans at 50 seats, leaving the two Georgia races as Democrats’ only chance at forcing a 50-50 margin. If former Vice President Joe Biden wins the White House and Republicans lose both races in Georgia, that would give Democrats a slim majority since vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris (D) could cast any tie-breaking votes in the Senate.

One runoff in Georgia is already guaranteed, with Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R) facing Democratic nominee Raphael Warnock.

The second race between Sen. David Perdue (R) and Democratic nominee Jon Ossoff has yet to be called, but is expected by officials on both sides to head to a runoff.

Perdue would need to remain above 50 percent from Tuesday’s election to avoid a runoff. He fell below 50 percent on Thursday and has incrementally ticked down to 49.84 percent.

Democrats are feeling bullish about the inroads they’ve made in Georgia, with Biden pulling ahead of President Trump in the state’s presidential vote count on Friday.

Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), who chairs the Democratic campaign arm, said Friday that the two runoffs “keep the fight for the majority firmly in play.”