Augusta voters react to Walker, Warnock debate

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - It’s debate night in Georgia as Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker finally face off in Savannah in the race for U.S. Senate.

They covered a variety of topics, including their views on abortion.

Georgia’s election rules say the winner must secure more than 50 percent of the vote.

If neither manages to improve on their recent poll numbers, they would meet in a runoff election in December.

We went to get some local reaction, and it’s what you might expect in a debate like this one, everyone seems to think their candidate won.

With election day less than a month away, folks seem to be engaged in what is likely to be a historic race.

“This keeps them energized to be together. You know how people feed energy, you know when one person is energized, and you’re in a group with other people energized? It builds energy,” said Chairman of Columbia County Republican Party Debbie McCord.

Friday, the energy was on full blast.

County Coordinator Georgia Shift Lakeland Bond said: “The debate in itself was historical when we saw two Black men for the first-time running center stage for us. So, I think that’s huge in itself.”

With control of the U.S. Senate hanging in the balance, all eyes were on the candidates.

McCord said: “We have some people here tonight who I don’t see very often, so it’s a good thing to see them, you know, out here and getting interested and engaged.”

Gathering in groups and hanging on to every word.

Bond said: “When you’re in groups, it gives you the opportunity to hear other ideas from other people and other thoughts.”

With so many hot-button issues, there’s a lot to talk about as election day approaches.

McCord said: “A lot of the people that are here tonight are the people that are going door to door knocking on doors, encouraging people to get out and vote.”

And while all eyes are on the TV screens now...

Bond said: “We have to worry about what the turnout is going to look like. Are we gonna start early voting?”

Copyright 2022 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.