DFA Congratulates Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock on Historic Senate Wins

Democracy for America (DFA) congratulates Jon Ossoff and Raphel Warnock for their historic wins in their respective Georgia Senate runoff races. Their victories are a beacon of hope during a dark week, and a reminder that voters are not only resilient, they are directly rejecting the institutions of white nationalism and authoritarianism that Donald Trump and his supporters have tried to reinforce in this country.

Those dual contests in Georgia were two of the most consequential elections in American history. Their successes will create a significant and essential shift in power in the U.S. Senate under the Biden Administration. With a 50/50 split in the Senate, Democrats and Republicans, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris would be the deciding vote on a Senate agenda, determining the majority. It also ends the reign of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, whose leadership is marred with legislative inaction and a blatant disregard for the needs of everyday Americans. 

Democracy for America was an early supporter of Rev. Raphael Warnock, a political neophyte with strong progressive values, whose candidacy was championed by Stacey Abrams. Jon Ossoff’s 2017 run against the 6th Congressional District special election in Georgia was inspired by Donald Trump’s failed leadership, and that run ultimately paved the way for his success against incumbent Senator David Perdue this year.

Statement from DFA CEO Yvette Simpson on the Georgia Senate victories:

On the same day the South elected its first ever Black, Democratic Senator, and its first Jewish Senator in over 40 years, white nationalists launched a terrorist attack on our nation’s capital. The juxtaposition between these events is not lost on us. In fact, they are an apt illustration of the political divide in America that showed up at the polls in November in historic numbers. Yet, in an act that can only be described as poetic justice, Georgia voters braved the pandemic for a second time and delivered a clear referendum against Republican control and Donald Trump’s racist, divisive leadership.

&With Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock in the United States Senate, President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris now have the power to lead America out of the abyss Donald Trump has left us in and build our country back to a place of respect and responsible leadership that best serves the people, not partisan ideologies.

“Joy is an act of political resistance, and we will not allow our joy over this trailblazing victory to be stolen by the violent and incendiary actions of Donald Trump and his enablers. We are immensely grateful for the Georgians who cast their vote in favor of Warnock and Ossoff in this election, and we salute all of the volunteers, organizers, activists and influencers on the ground, on Zoom, making calls and sending text messages to get out the vote in Georgia and turn Georgia blue yet again! 

“We are proud of our work as progressives in supporting candidates who will work for and serve the people first, because they understand you cannot put America first until and unless you put her people first.

“As progressives, our work is just beginning. If this week has shown us anything, it is that our democracy must be defended at all costs. While we continue our fight to remove the knee of police brutality and social injustice off of the neck of Black people, Indigenous communities and people of color (BIPOC), we will keep pressure on the Biden administration to meet and deliver on the needs of the people who elected him. The progressive movement delivered the power to the President-elect so that he could, in his words “build back better.” We look forward to helping him keep his promise." -- Yvette Simpson, CEO, Democracy for America

DFA has 30,244 members in the state of Georgia, and more than one million members nationwide.