Sen. Raphael Warnock (D) defeated challenger Hershel Walker (R) in the Georgia Senate runoff race on Tuesday. Warnock’s victory gives the Democrats a 51 seat majority in the Senate. Perspectives on the runoff are split on which candidates’ actions made more impact on the results – did Warnock’s efforts and electability win the election, or did Walker’s blunders and scandals lose it? The answer to this question could shape both parties' future strategy.

From the Left: Some are crediting the victory to Warnock’s electoral appeal and pointing to him as a leading force in the new Democratic Party. A writer in CNN Opinion determined that “should Biden decide not to run for reelection, Warnock should be the Democratic Party’s first choice to lead them back to the presidency.” A writer in MSNBC (Left Bias) called Walker “uniquely terrible,” determining it “says something awful about our country and our politics that somebody as eminently disqualified and dishonest as Walker even won his party’s primary.”

From the Right: Most on the right are focusing on Walker, attributing the defeat to Walker’s performance during the campaign as well as the negative influence of former president Donald Trump’s endorsement. A writer in the Washington Examiner called Walker “scatterbrained and frankly ineloquent,” determining that Republicans needed increased candidate vetting moving forward. A writer in Fox News Opinion (Right Bias) concluded that Walker’s defeat was a signal that Trump, who encouraged Walker to run and campaigned with him, “must move aside” if Republicans hope to form effective voter coalitions.