Judy: Georgia's runoff election
for a U.S. Senate seat has
broken records for the most
people voting early on a single
day.
More than one million people
have already cast their ballots
in the race that was triggered
after neither the income but
democratic senator, Raphael
Warnock, nor Republican
challenger Herschel walker
received the required 50% of the
vote to win outright last month.
Joining me now from Atlanta is
our Laura Lopez who has been on
the campaign trail with both
candidates today.
So hello, Laura.
The election is next Tuesday.
Former president Obama is there.
His second visit.
He was there last month.
Tell us what you are seeing and
hearing.
Laura: I am here at the historic
home and yards in the Kirkwood
neighborhood of Atlanta in the
former president, Obama, is
going to be joining senator
Warnock here.
He's really trying to make this
final push ahead of a final day
of early voting which is Friday
and also ahead of him as he
said, the December 6 runoff.
I was speaking to voters on
their way in here.
The line was snaking around this
old railyard and voters were
saying that they were really
motivated to encourage others
around them.
Democratic voters to vote for
Warnock, saying that they really
wanted to see him continue in
the senate and that they felt as
though it was just as important
as the general election so right
now, it's not really looking as
though enthusiasm is dropping
off at all among Democrats.
Judy: Really interesting and as
we just reported, historic
turnout so far in the early
voting even though the balance
of power in the senate is not on
the line.
How is that thought to be
affecting the race overall?
Laura: Democrats in Georgia
think the fact that Democrats
have maintained control of the
senate actually gives them an
edge heading into this runoff
because they are thinking that
it could potentially dampen
Republican turnout.
Now, Herschel walker is trying
to really win over those Brian
Kemp voters.
That is the Republican governor
in Georgia.
The voters that did not vote for
him in the general election.
There was some 200,000 that
voted for governor Kemp, who did
not vote for Herschel walker and
there were a number of split
ticket voters so walker is
trying to really win over a lot
of those moderate Independence,
people who voted for Warnock as
well in the general, but it
remains to be seen if he's going
to be able to close that gap has
Democrats have really changed
the ground game here, Judy,
since 20, and I was talking to a
former election official, a
Republican, who is saying that
Democrats have improved their
organizing around the early vote
come around absentee voting, and
then it's really put Republicans
on their back foot as they try
to close that gap.
Judy: You mention Herschel
walker a moment ago.
The Republican candidate.
You were with him on the
campaign trail earlier today.
Tell us how he's spending the
final days of the campaign.
Laura: Herschel walker is on a
bus tour as he makes his rounds
throughout the state.
I was with him at a stop in
Columbus, Georgia, a little
south of Atlanta, and he was
really just trying to rally his
most loyal supporters there.
The voters had voted for walker
in the general election.
They were not voters who were
coming over to him or
switching at all.
They said they were supporting
him because they wanted someone
who would vote against president
Biden's agenda in the senate and
walker's speech was really just
a redmeat speech.
In it, walker said he would be a
check against by then and
equated voting for Democrats to
actually heading towards hell
versus heaven.
There were a lot of biblical
verses walker doled out.
There were speeches about gender
identity and culture wars so
there was not in his -- there
was not much in his speech that
could win over some of the
independents he said he's trying
to in his final stretch.
Judy: Really interesting.
It is all heating up in Georgia
as they head towards this big
Tuesday runoff.
Laura Lopez reported for us in
Atlanta.
Thank you, Laura.