Georgia Republicans take U.S. Senate and governor races, avoiding predicted runoffs

Once again, polling in Georgia was wrong and the races for U.S. Senate seat and the goveor’s office were not quite as close as predicted. Republican David Perdue defeated Democrat Michelle Nunn 53 -45, and Georgia Goveor Nathan Deal (R) beat state Sen. Jason Carter (D) 53-45, both with 98 percent of precincts reporting.

While it was quite clear for the past few weeks that Carter was most likely going to lose, only one poll last week showed Deal with more than 50 percent of the vote – at 50.8 percent.  The race for Senate was supposed to be extremely close, and not one poll showed either one of the candidates with more than 50 percent of the vote.

In both races, the Libertarian candidates only received 2 percent of the vote, lower than most polls showed.  Clearly, those voters decided to cross over to the Republicans before the runoff elections.

Democrats, who usually have a low tuout during midterms, claimed that their tu-out-the-vote efforts in 2014 will trump Republicans’, but clearly that just didn’t happen.  

Deal will begin his second term as the 82^nd goveor of Georgia in January without ever losing an election in the 34 year-long political career.  Perdue, a newcomer to politics and former CEO of Reebok and the Dollar General, will be one of the more conservative lawmakers in the Senate.