Anti-trans Republican Herschel Walker loses Georgia runoff to rival Raphael Warnock
Raphael Warnock (L) beat Herschel Walker. (Getty)
Herschel Walker has lost Georgia’s midterm election runoff as Raphael Warnock secures the 51st Democratic seat.
The notoriously transphobic Republican lost the state election by approximately 40,000 votes after Associated Press called the race on Wednesday (7 December).
The vote was called in just three-and-a-half hours after polls closed at 7pm EST, despite votes still being counted.
The Democratic victory adds to the incredibly close fight for a Senate majority between the major US parties, with Democrats leading a 51-49 majority against Republicans.
The two political competitors were forced to compete in a runoff after neither party won more than 50 per cent of the vote in November.
During his victory speech, Warnock reflected on his hard-fought path to the Senate, while reiterating his promise to “make our country greater against unspeakable odds.”
“After a hard-fought campaign – or should I say campaigns – it is my honour to utter the four most powerful words ever spoken in a democracy,” Warnock said after his victory was declared. “The people have spoken.
“I am Georgia. I am an example and an iteration of its pain and its promise, of the brutality and the possibility.”
Meanwhile, during Walker’s rally, the former NFL player acknowledged his lacklustre campaign during a concession speech in which he thanked his team.
“I don’t want any of you to stop believing in America,” he said. “I want you to believe in America and continue to believe in the constitution and believe in our elected officials.”
A wave of relieved sighs from LGBTQ+ minorities swept across both the state of Georgia and social media upon Walker’s loss.
His campaign not only included transphobic rhetoric designed to stir up animosity towards the transgender community – it was actively defined by it.
In fact, one of Walker’s last campaign advertisements leading up to voting day targeted transgender athletes by repeatedly misgendering them and accusing trans women of stolen valour.
Earlier on in his campaign, Walker made several anti-trans remarks, including that trans people wouldn’t be admitted into heaven and that “grenades don’t know nothing about pronouns.“
One of the more sinister parts of Walker’s campaign was his speech on the day after the horrific Club Q shooting in Colorado, where he berated “weak leaders in Washington” because he claimed they “couldn’t define what a woman is”.
It wasn’t just transphobia that defined Walker’s culturally bigoted campaign run. He also pushed anti-abortion rhetoric, despite several accusers claiming he paid for their abortions.
