Poll Shows Democrats Warnock, Ossoff Leading In Georgia Senate Races

ATLANTA - With the Jan. 5 runoff races now just a little more than a two weeks away, a final SurveyUSA Poll commissioned exclusively by 11Alive shows that Democratic candidates Rev. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff are still holding onto their leads over Republican incumbents Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue.

But, thanks to contributing factors like caustic rhetoric on the integrity of the election system, the races are still anyone's to win.

According to the data, Ossoff has managed to widen his lead over Perdue since 11Alive's last poll on the Senate runoff, conducted a little over two weeks ago. Ossoff now leads Perdue 51% to 46% among those polled – up from his 50-to-48% lead.

Meanwhile, in the other runoff race, Warnock's lead over Loeffler remains unchanged from two weeks ago; he still holds a 52-to-45% lead. Both polls are within the margin of error, though.

At this moment, it appears both Democratic candidates may be benefitting from Republican infighting over who and what's to blame for President Trump's defeat in the Nov. 3 general election. Some in the GOP have laid blame at Republican leaders in Georgia and some extremist supporters of the president have suggested Republicans sit out the election.

Some Republican voters may be listening. According to the survey results, roughly 5% of the 690 registered voters are sitting out the election. More of those voters are Republican, with some believing either "the voting process is rigged" or that "their vote doesn't matter."

Overall, though, roughly 70% of voters say they have full or some confidence that the runoff election will be handled properly, and approve of the job the Secretary of State's office has done thus far. Adrianne M Haney, www.11Alive.com

SIDENOTES:

In other News, the Daily Kos, 12/18/20, reports:

GEORGIA RUNOFFS:

GA-Sen-A, GA-Sen-B: In a first, Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock have released a joint TV ad-they even say "we approve this message" in unison at the end-featuring none other than Joe Biden. In a direct-to-camera monologue designed to resemble a presidential address, Biden says, "On day one as your president, I'm prepared to sign a COVID relief package that fully funds the public health response needed, led by Georgia's own CDC."

He promises free testing and vaccination for all Americans, as well as small business relief, and emphasizes, "I need Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in the United States Senate to get this done." Biden even finishes with the traditional salutation he offers after all speeches: "God Bless America, and may God protect our troops."

Ossoff, meanwhile, devotes his own 60-second spot to his mentor, the late John Lewis, and his legacy. It begins with footage of Lewis and fellow civil rights protestors getting brutally beaten at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama before showing Ossoff at the very same bridge today, narrating the ad.

Noting the courage of Lewis and his compatriots that brought about massive change in the 1960s, Ossoff insists, "The promise of equal justice in America remains unfulfilled, so together we'll fight for a new Civil Rights Act and a new Voting Rights Act. To ensure equal justice for all no matter the color of our skin, to end racial profiling and police brutality, and to stop anyone from suppressing the sacred right to vote."

The ad ends with a 10-second clip of Lewis addressing the Democratic convention in 2012, exhorting attendees to remember, "Too many people struggled, suffered, and died to make it possible for every American to exercise their right to vote.