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Black, liberal voters deliver control of Senate to Democrats with projected Ossoff win, NBC News Exit Poll finds

The Democratic Party was pushed to victory with the support of 92 percent of Black and liberal voters, the exit poll found.
Image: Jon Ossoff, Raphael G Warnock
Democratic Senate candidates Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff at a "Get Out the Vote" event in Jonesboro, Ga., on Oct. 27.Brynn Anderson / AP file

Democrat Jon Ossoff has defeated Republican David Perdue in their Georgia Senate runoff, NBC News projected. The win, along with the projected win of Democrat Raphael Warnock over Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler, puts the Democratic Party in control of the Senate.

Runoff voters were about evenly split on which party should control the Senate, with 49 percent saying the Democratic Party should control it and 48 percent saying the Republican Party, according to NBC News Exit Poll results of early and Election Day voters.

The Democratic Party was pushed to victory with the support of 9 in 10 Black and liberal voters, about 7 in 10 voters under 30, 67 percent of urban voters, 63 percent of moderates, 5 in 10 college graduates and 5 in 10 women.

Eight in 10 of those who thought the presidential election was conducted fairly in Georgia voted for the Democrats. And 6 in 10 of those who thought the votes in Tuesday's election would be counted accurately voted for the Democrats.

Seventy-six percent of those who prioritize containing the coronavirus over the economy voted for Democrats, as did 59 percent of those who said they were worried about contracting the coronavirus.

According to the exit poll, Ossoff won the support of traditional voting blocs for Democrats — 92 percent of Black voters (up from 87 percent in the November election), 92 percent of liberals (up from 85 percent in November), 67 percent of voters under 30 (up from 54 percent in November) and 63 percent of moderates.

Ossoff won the support of 54 percent of college graduates, 55 percent of women and 52 percent of independents.

Warnock also won the support of traditional voting blocs for Democrats — 93 percent of Black voters, 93 percent of liberals, 68 percent of voters under 30 and 63 percent of moderates, according to the exit poll. Fifty-five percent of college graduates, 54 percent of women and 52 percent of independents voted for Warnock, the pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church, Martin Luther King Jr.'s former church in Atlanta.

Older voters in the runoffs broke for Perdue and Loeffler (both 62 percent) over Ossoff and Warnock (both 38 percent), according to the exit poll.

When asked whom they had voted for in November, runoff voters were about evenly divided between President Donald Trump (48 percent) and President-elect Joe Biden (47 percent), according to the exit poll.

The NBC News Exit Poll was conducted with voters as they left polling places in Georgia on Tuesday. To account for the high number of early and absentee voters and ensure a sample that accurately represents all Georgians, the exit poll also includes extensive interviews with in-person early voters, as well as a telephone survey.