The Battle for Control of the U.S. Senate

Of all Joe Biden's victories on Nov. 3, the most surprising and remarkable and was winning Georgia, a Deep South, deep red state that is now suddenly the focus of Democratic hopes for winning control of the U.S. Senate. And controlling the Senate is vital to Joe Biden and his agenda in 2021.

Right now, Republicans hold a 50-48 edge. But if two Democratic challengers can knock off Georgia's two incumbent Republican senators, David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, in Georgia's January 5 runoff election, that puts the Senate at 50-50 and gives VP-Elect Kamala Harris the deciding vote.

The stakes are extremely high, the odds are tough, but the political arithmetic is enticing to Democrats because of the state's rapidly changing demographics. Two million more people were added in the past decade, so that the electorate today is 10% foreign born and 40% nonwhite.

The political vibe is growing more diverse and cosmopolitan. College-educated women have become a political force in suburban counties, reinforcing Atlanta's historic black movements, all newly re-activated and expanded by an aggressive, two-year minority voter registration drive.

Democratic hopes ride on Rev. Raphael Warnock, senior pastor of Martin Luther King's old church (Ebenezer Baptist Church) , and Jon Ossoff, an upstart, 33-year-old investigative journalist turned politician. They’re Biden Democrats, fighting for voting rights, a livable wage, environmental protections, expanding Obamacare, and social and racial justice.