Georgia certifies Senate runoff results

The Georgia Secretary of State's Office has officially certified the results of the 2020-2021 runoff elections for Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock.

"In certifying the results, the Secretary of State affirmed that all 159 counties have provided to the state the total votes tabulated for each state and federal candidate," the office stated in a press release.

"Further, the Secretary of State affirms that the statewide consolidated returns for state and federal offices are a true and correct tabulation of the certified returns received by this office from each county."

Ossoff and Warnock unseated incumbent Republicans David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler respectively in tight races. Ossoff defeated Perdue by less than 55,000 votes while Warnock unseated Loeffler by a margin of less than 94,000 votes.

Both Republican candidates emerged victorious in the first ballot in November of 2020. However, due to their failure to secure a majority, under Georgia election rules both races were forced to go into a runoff between the first and second-placed candidates.

The Democratic victory came as a major blow to Republicans who were hoping to hold on to the Senate following Biden's victory in the presidential election. Rather than beginning his term as a lame duck, Biden will hold a slim, one-vote majority in the Senate.

The Democrats have held a majority in the House of Representatives since 2018. Both inbound Senators are expected to be sworn in on Wednesday.