ELECTION DAY LIVE BLOG | Kemp wins big, Senate race too close to call

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - With more than 2.5 million ballots having already been cast, thousands more Georgians went to the polls Tuesday to vote in the state’s nationally watched governor’s race and U.S. Senate race, the latter of which could determine the nation’s balance of political power. Here’s the latest Election Day news from around the state of Georgia:

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11:57 P.M.

Gov. Brian Kemp has claimed victory in the governor’s race.

11:55 P.M.

Stacey Abrams has delivered her concession speech in the governor’s race.

11:49 P.M.

Democratic challenger Bee Nguyen has conceded the Secretary of State’s race to incumbent Republican Brad Raffensberger.

11:15 P.M.

11:00 P.M.

10:45 P.M.

10:30 P.M.

Kemp and Abrams’ camps react as Gov. Kemp nears re-election

10:27 P.M.

10:20 P.M.

‘I feel like Ricky Bobby’ Herschel Walker holds rally at The Omni at The Battery Atlanta

10:15 P.M.

Shon Gables is joined with experts to discuss election analysis on Atlanta News First.

10:10 P.M.

10:00 P.M.

Ciara Cummings is with the Burt Jones campaign trail as they wait for election results.

9:21 P.M.

U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath (D-7) wins re-election.

9:15 P.M.

U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson (D-4) wins re-election.

8:58 P.M.

U.S. Rep. Drew Ferguson (R-3) wins re-election.

8:57 P.M.

Marjorie Taylor Greene wins re-election in Georgia’s 14th district.

8:40 P.M.

U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-9) has been re-elected.

8:30 P.M.

Race for U.S. Senate: Zac Summers is with the Raphael Warnock campaign and Adam Murphy is with the Herschel Walker campaign as they wait for election results.

8:27 P.M.

Nikema Williams has reportedly won re-election to Georgia’s 5th congressional district. U.S. Rep. David Scott also declared winner.

8:25 P.M.

Voting hours at two Cobb County locations were extended after they opened late.

8:15 P.M.

Rachel Aragon is providing election results throughout the night as Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger seeks relection.

8:10 P.M.

U.S. Reps. Nikema Williams (D-5) and David Scott (D-13) have been re-elected to Congress.

8:04 P.M.

Atlanta News First investigative reporter Rcahel Polansky is at the Fulton County Elections Office, where interim Commissioner Nadine Williams called Election Day “successful.”

8 P.M.

With virtually every poll now closed in Georgia and less than 25% of precincts reporting, Democrats are maintaining their early leads in virtually every statewide race.

7:45 P.M.

Zac Summers is with the Raphael Warnock campaign and Adam Murphy is with the Herschel Walker campaign as they wait for election results.

Patrick Quinn is with the Brian Kemp campaign and Tori Cooper is with the Stacey Abrams campaign as they wait for early election results.

7:20 P.M.

With 8% of precincts reporting, Abrams and other Democrats continue their early lead.

7:03 P.M.

Democrat Stacey Abrams and U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock take early leads, as results from the Augusta-Richmond County area comes in first.

6:29 P.M.

Following an order issued by the DeKalb County Superior Court, DeKalb Voter Registration and Elections is extending voting times until 7:40 p.m. at Lawrenceville Road United Methodist Church, 3142 Lawrenceville Highway in Tucker.

6:15 P.M.

6:00 P.M.

Patrick Quinn is with the Brian Kemp campaign and Tori Cooper is with the Stacey Abrams campaign throughout election night.

5:48 P.M.

Hours at the Kennesaw 3A precinct at the Ben Robertson Community Center have been extended until 7:45 p.m. The precinct at the Fair Oaks Community Center will accept in-person voting until 7:06 p.m.

5:19 P.M.

Following an order issued by the DeKalb County Superior Court, DeKalb Voter Registration and Elections is extending voting times at Solid Rock AME Church until 7:39 p.m.

5:02 P.M.

Patrick Quinn is at the site where Governor Brian Kemp and his supporters will gather election night.

3:22 P.M.

Gabe Sterling, the chief operating officer for the Georgia Secretary of State, tweeted the longest waiting time in Georgia is 10 minutes in Union City.

3:18 P.M.

Gabe Sterling, the chief operating officer for the Georgia Secretary of State, tweeted most polling locations in Georgia have “zero wait.” Average statewide wait times are two minutes, and “counties are still processing voters in about 49 seconds.”

PHOTOS: Election Day in Georgia, Nov. 8, 2022

12:25 P.M.

Cobb County has announced that two Cobb County voting precincts will remain open past 7 p.m. after delays in opening for the general election.

Superior Court Judge Gregory Poole signed the order, which will extend the voting hours of the Kennesaw 3A precinct at the Ben Roberston Community Center until 7:45 p.m. The Oregon 03 precinct at the Fair Oaks Community Center will accept in-person voting until 7:06 p.m. Election workers experienced delays in preparing the precinct to open, prompting the request to the judge.

PHOTOS: Election Day in Georgia | Nov. 8, 2022

12:12 P.M.

Gabe Sterling, the chief operating officer for the Georgia Secretary of State, tweeted the average statewide waiting time for voters in polling lines was about three minutes.

10:13 A.M.

Poll manager at senior center in Union City reports early-morning problem with some machines. The problem has since been resolved.

10 A.M.

Fulton County election officials announced during a 10 a.m. press conference that two poll workers have been removed because of social media posts. Officials also discussed a problem with approximately 20 voters in Chattahoochee Hills. However, officials said they are pleased overall with preparations for the big day and how the day has started.

RELATED: Poll workers removed in Johns Creek because of social media posts, according to officials

ORIGINAL STORY

The nation’s most watched governor’s race features incumbent Republican Brian Kemp facing a re-election challenge from Democrat Stacey Abrams, who is seeking to become the nation’s first Black female governor.

Full interactive results of Georgia’s Nov. 8 elections

Democratic incumbent Raphael Warnock is in a tight re-election bid for his first, full Senate term against Herschel Walker, the former UGA football legend who has faced a barrage of attacks on his personal character.

On Monday, a new Landmark Communications poll conducted exclusively for Atlanta News First and Peachtree TV showed Kemp leading Abrams among likely voters by a 52-46% margin. Libertarian Shane Hazel is polling at 2% with 1% undecided in the poll of 1,214 likely voters.

RELATED: Four constitutional amendments are being decided by Georgians right now

Walker and Warnock are virtually tied, with neither approaching a majority to win Tuesday’s election outright. If that trend holds, Warnock and Walker will face each other in a Dec. 6 runoff.

Who holds the balance of power? Full interactive results of the nation’s Nov. 8 elections

In other downticket statewide races, the poll found Republican Burt Jones leading Democrat Charlie Bailey 50-41%; Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger leading Democrat Bee Nguyen 48-40%, and Attorney General Chris Carr leading Democrat Jen Jordan 47-43%.

Early voting in Georgia shattered virtually every previous record in terms of turnout.

This year’s race between Kemp and Abrams is a rematch of their epic 2018 race, in which they both sought the governor’s mansion, as then-Gov. Nathan Deal was constitutionally prohibited from seeking a third term. Kemp was then secretary of state, while Abrams had just finished up a term as a state House representative from intown Atlanta.

Full coverage of Georgia’s 2022 midterms

But this year’s rematch is much different from their 2018 encounter. Kemp now has a four-year record as governor of mostly popular conservative philosophies; oversees a strong state economy; and seems to have weathered a blistering attack from former President Donald Trump for not overturning the outcome of state’s 2020 presidential election.

Abrams, meanwhile, has been out of office since 2017 and has consistently trailed in the polls.

In Washington, D.C., there are 50 Republicans in the Senate and 48 Democrats, but the Senate’s two Independents caucus with Democrats, meaning the body is split at 50-50. Vice President Kamala Harris, a Democrat, casts any tie-breaking votes.

Warnock won his current seat in a January 2021 runoff against Kelly Loeffler, who had been appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp to fill the unexpired term of Johnny Isakson, who had resigned due to health reasons. Warnock’s win, along with Jon Ossoff’s ouster of then-incumbent David Perdue, gave Georgia two Democratic U.S. senators for the first time in decades.

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