Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler and Democratic challenger Raphael Warnock are set to face off in a televised debate on Dec. 6th at 7 pm US Eastern Time. It’s the first head-to-head debate scheduled between the two candidates in advance of their Jan. 5 runoff election in Georgia.
Georgia Republican Sen. David Perdue, who is facing Democratic opponent Jon Ossoff in the runoff, declined to participate. He will be represented by an empty podium during an event starting at 5 pm US Eastern Time on the same night.
The Georgia election will shape which party controls the US Senate and therefore the prospects for far-reaching climate action during the Biden administration. If either Republican wins, the GOP will hold its majority in the Senate, while victories by both Democrats would yield a 50-50 Senate — giving Vice President-elect Kamala Harris the tie-breaking vote.
This makes the December 6 debates worth watching, especially for journalists on the climate beat. Within Georgia, a warming world is creating multiple threats, as Climate Central lays out in a new fact sheet for journalists. Rising seas jeopardize the state’s coastal communities, higher temperatures can lead to worsening drought, threatening Georgia’s wetlands and agriculture, the state’s biggest economic sector. Increasing heat extends the already miserable pollen season.
We hope our journalistic colleagues question all of the candidates in these debates and beyond about how Georgia should respond to the climate crisis and its solutions.
The debates will be available for viewers to watch on Georgia Public Broadcasting and live and on demand on The Atlanta Press Club Facebook page at www.fb.com/TheAtlantaPressClub.