On December 6th, Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker faced off in the all-important race for the 100th Senate seat. For the Democrats, this win meant a majority. For the Republicans, a win would have ensured a 50/50 split.

Georgia is holding their second runoff Senate election in the last year, both of which have featured Raphael Warnock on the ballot. This election cycle is their first that features an extensive list of restrictive voting laws; these rules were implemented by Georgia’s GOP Governor Brian Kemp after the 2020 presidential election, which saw him stand up to Donald Trump.

The two candidates on the ballot could not be more different. Raphael Warnock, the Democratic nominee, is a senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia. He also has a master of divinity PHD from the Union Theological Seminary College. Herschel Walker, the Republican nominee, has worked in football for his entire life. He was a star running back for the University of Georgia, then a superstar with the Dallas Cowboys.

After retiring, Walker now owns Renaissance Man Food Services, a chicken distribution company. Though successful in the business world, Herschel Walker has had his fair share of personal life troubles. He has been accused of domestic violence against his family, with his son recently tweeting, “I know my mom and I would really appreciate it if my father Herschel Walker stopped lying and making a mockery of us. You’re not a ‘family man’ when you left us to bang a bunch of women, threatened to kill us, and had us move over six times in six months running from your violence.” These bouts have been partially caused by Walker’s diagnosis of dissociative identity disorder, a mental illness that gives him at least twelve different alternative personalities.

The month-long campaigning process was long and hard fought. Both candidates shelled out the big bucks for the race, with Walker spending about $60 million and Warnock using an exorbitant $170 million. This money was used for advertisements, either endorsing their candidate or smearing the other. It was also used to host campaign events and fly people to said events. The last week before the election was one of the most intense weeks in Georgian history. Both candidates brought out well-known personalities. Warnock had Democratic big shots like Barack Obama running the campaign trail for him. Walker also had Trump speak to influence the audience in his speeches.

The day before the election, both candidates went all-in on making public appearances around Georgia. Herschel Walker went to a winery and said, “I love y’all, and we’re gonna win this election.” He also went to a University of Georgia game in Athens. Warnock also ran around Georgia as he made several public appearances, including a sermon at his church.

On Tuesday, December 6th, all eyes in America were watching as the Georgia results came flooding in. Herschel Walker took an early lead. Although the edge was small, everybody knew that this race would come down to the final votes. By the time that 70% of the vote was counted, Walker and Warnock kept flip-flopping the lead, changing it every minute. Then, suddenly, Warnock started to pull ahead. More and more votes kept flooding in from urban areas like Atlanta, and hope for Herschel Walker became slimmer as the night went on. Around 10:30 EST, Reverend Raphael Warnock was re-elected to the United States Senate. Cheers in Warnock Headquarters rang in the air as rap music was blasted from speakers: the first African American senator in Georgia’s history was back. Herschel Walker made a gracious concession speech, which was a 180 from other past Republicans.

Warnock won, Democrats took a full majority in the Senate, Joe Biden became the first Democratic president to gain seats in the Senate during the midterms since FDR, and the end came to one of the greatest Senate races in American history.