Midterm marathon continues: Biggest races yet to be called, Georgia looking like a runoff, Arizona looking like it’ll be messy
Asher Notheis
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The midterm elections did not go the way many were expecting, and there are several races that have yet to be called.
Many were expecting a red wave on Tuesday night, though it failed to materialize, and the Democrats ended up performing better than expected. However, for many races, the election is ongoing, and the winners of said races may take some time before being declared.
Arizona gubernatorial race between Kari Lake and Katie Hobbs
The governor’s race for the Grand Canyon State has not yet been called as of Wednesday morning, and Democratic candidate Katie Hobbs has told voters to “prepare” to wait days for votes to be counted in this year’s midterm elections.
“Every single vote matters, and every single vote counts equally — whether you voted by mail, dropped off your ballot at a secure drop box yesterday, or voted in person today,” Hobbs said in a statement Tuesday evening. “We must all be patient and wait for every last vote to be counted.”
Hobbs has pulled ahead of Kari Lake, a 2020 election denier who is endorsed by former President Donald Trump, in the early voting. However, due to votes still being counted, the battle for Arizona’s governorship is far from over, according to the Associated Press.
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Arizona Senate race between Blake Masters and Sen. Mark Kelly (D)
Like the state’s gubernatorial race, the Senate race is still very tight the morning after the election. Incumbent Sen. Mark Kelly has managed to take an early lead in the election, a reflection of mail-in ballots returned ahead of Election Day, but Blake Masters is expected to narrow the lead when in-person ballots are counted.
Kelly, first elected to office in 2020, is running for reelection against Trump-endorsed Masters. Ahead of the election, Kelly appeared to distance himself from President Joe Biden, dodging questions on whether he should run for president again in 2024 and not giving a direct answer on if Biden should visit Arizona ahead of the election.
The Republican Party was aiming to take control of both the House and the Senate ahead of Tuesday. To gain control of the upper chamber of Congress, the GOP needs a net gain of at least one Senate seat.
Georgia Senate race between Herschel Walker and Sen. Raphael Warnock (D)
The Georgia Senate race still has a ways to go before a winner is declared, with the possibility of a runoff between the two candidates growing more likely. Neither candidate in the Senate race looks likely to surpass the 50% threshold necessary to avoid a runoff by state law, with 98% of the vote counted, though Sen. Raphael Warnock has taken the lead over Walker with 49.3% to 48.6%.
The two will now begin a four-week campaign blitz before a rematch on Dec. 6. Both acknowledged the likelihood of a runoff at their respective election night parties early Wednesday morning.
Nevada Senate race between Adam Laxalt and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D)
Results for the Senate race in Nevada have been delayed because two counties where a majority of Nevada voters reside are not expected to start counting some mail-in ballots until Wednesday. Clark County has delayed its counting due to a shortage of election workers, and Washoe County received a large number of mail and drop-off ballots, according to the Nevada Independent.
“Clark is not counting drop boxes tonight, but to be clear, we said all along that we would only have some of the results on election night,” Jennifer Russell, a spokesperson for the Nevada secretary of state, told NBC News on Tuesday. “By law, Nevada counties have until Nov. 12 to receive mail ballots.”
In the weeks leading up to the election, both Adam Laxalt and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto were neck and neck, with Laxalt taking a slight lead at the start of November, according to FiveThirtyEight.
Wisconsin Senate race between Sen. Ron Johnson (R) and Mandela Barnes
A winner for the Wisconsin Senate race has not yet been declared as of Wednesday morning, though Sen. Ron Johnson has taken the lead for the time being, getting 50.6% of the votes against Mandela Barnes’s 49.4%, according to WISN 12.
“We feel very confident, but I’m not going to declare victory until all the numbers are in, but this race is over,” Johnson said.
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Barnes’s campaign issued its own statement after midnight, saying it was aware the race would always be close but that it is “committed to making sure every vote is counted.”
“We will wait and see what the Wisconsin voters have decided after all their voices are heard,” the statement read.