Trump to campaign in Georgia as GOP scrambles to save Senate seats

The Republican Party could risk losing the two Senate seats in Georgia if voter apathy on the right, sparked by Trump's rhetoric, lingers

While President Donald Trump continues to defiantly express his belief that the 2020 election was fraudulent, the outgoing officeholder is now setting his sights on the Georgia Senate runoffs, hoping to help Republicans retain the two seats and their majority control in the U.S. Senate.

Trump is hoping to rejuvenate his base in the state, which went for his challenger Joe Biden in the presidential contest, as a number of his followers and supporters consider boycotting the Senate elections scheduled for early January, as reported by CNBC.

The Republican Party could risk losing the two Senate seats in Georgia if voter apathy on the right lingers. Until earlier this month, the state hadn’t elected a Democratic president since the 1990s. Democrats are vying to win their first U.S. Senate race, and potentially a twofer, in the state since 2000.

Trump’s election fraud rhetoric, in which he has alleged mail-in voting would “rig” the election for his opponent and running mate Kamala Harris, could be contributing to a lack of trust in the electoral process and interest to cast a ballot for the two Republican candidates in a state that has been reliably red for decades.

President Donald Trump speaks at a rally on November 02, 2020 in Avoca, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Democrats hope to flip the two Senate seats blue, splitting the makeup of the Upper Chamber and holding an advantage with Harris, the vice president-elect, serving as a tiebreaker between the two parties.

Both of the senate seats representing Georgia were up for election in the 2020 election cycle, with Sen. David Perdue, the senior senator from the Peach State, seeking a second term and a second seat open to finish Sen. Johnny Isakson‘s term after he retired at the end of 2019 due to health concerns.

READ MORE: Trump says he will leave the White House if Biden gets Electoral College votes

Sen. Kelly Loeffler, the Republican appointed to continue Isakson’s term, is looking to defend her seat in a special election to complete the remaining two years of Isakson’s six-year term.

Loeffler and Perdue will face off again against their respective Democratic opponents, Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff. Though Perdue won a vote plurality in the Nov. 3 race, he did not reach a 50% threshold needed to win the race outright. Warnock also obtained a plurality of the vote in the special election, but the pastor-turn politician’s tally was well below a majority vote.

Politico initially reported that Trump supporters are considering boycotting the run-off because they believe that GOP incumbents may have been complicit in Biden’s win.

READ MORE: Georgia Sen. David Perdue’s stock trades sparked federal inquiry

The state of Georgia officially certified victory for Biden on Nov. 20 after a recount. Biden is the first Democrat to win electoral votes from the Peach State in 28 years, beating Trump by more than 12,000 votes.

The president responded to a Twitter post by Newsmax regarding the possible runoff boycott, stating again that the election was cheated while urging his supporters not to boycott.

 “We must get out and help David and Kelly, two GREAT people,” Trump wrote. “Otherwise we are playing right into the hands of some very sick people. I will be in Georgia on Saturday!”

White House spokesman Judd Deere confirmed that President Trump will be going to Georgia on Saturday, Dec. 5, to campaign on behalf to Loeffler and Perdue.

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