Herschel Walker

US President Joe Biden 's Democrats have cemented their control of The Senate by winning a bitterly fought seat in Georgia, according to projections.

Raphael Warnock fought off Republican challenger Herschel Walker in a race That had been left undecided after last month's midterm elections.

Because no candidate passed 50% of the vote in November, The Contest had to be settled by a run-off.

Democrats will now run the upper chamber of Congress by 51-49.

Mr Warnock won by about 37,000 votes in November's vote, not enough to cross the 50% threshold for victory.

The 53-year-old southern Baptist preacher at the Atlanta church once led by civil rights leader Martin Luther King had argued That The Race was about competence and character.

Mr Walker, an American Football legend and political newcomer, joins a string of defeated candidates who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump .

His campaign was dogged by claims - which he denies - That he paid for two former girlfriends' abortions, despite his calls for the procedure to be outlawed.

The 60-year-old also had to acknowledge during The Campaign That he had fathered three children out of wedlock, despite having long railed against absentee fathers.

Republicans, meanwhile, ran an attack ad reminding voters of an allegation by Mr Warnock's ex-wife That he ran over her foot in a car during a March 2020 domestic dispute.

Election Day voting numbers in Georgia reached 1. 4 million, election official Gabriel Sterling said after polls closed, adding there had been " record turnout across the board".

A record-breaking 1. 9 million Georgians had already cast early or postal ballots.

Mr Warnock's campaign enjoyed a big fundraising advantage, spending about $170m (£140m), compared with Mr Walker's nearly $60m, according to federal filings.

Mr Walker's Senate bid was The Last Republican opportunity to flip a Senate seat following midterm defeats by Trump-backed Senate candidates in New Hampshire , Nevada, Arizona and Pennsylvania. Other candidates Mr Trump championed won in Ohio, Wisconsin and North Carolina .

Both President Biden, who has had low approval ratings, and Mr Trump largely avoided wading into The Race .

In the US midterms, Republicans won a slender majority in the US House of Representatives, the lower chamber of Congress.

Tuesday night's victory means That although most legislation will still need Republican support, it will be slightly easier for Mr Biden to appoint judges and members of his administration.

If Democrats had lost Georgia, The Party 's control of a 50-50 Senate would have depended on US Vice-President Kamala Harris ' tiebreaking vote.

Source of news: bbc.com