The Republicans’ nightmare in Georgia

Joe Biden is the President elect. His lead in Pennsylvania is unassailable, such that even if he somehow slipped behind in Arizona, Nevada or Georgia, he will still receive the 270 electoral votes needed to win the White House.

President Trump, however, at the time of writing, continues to dig in. With lawsuits filed in several key states and the President making increasingly deranged statements around ‘illegal votes’ and the illegitimacy of late-counted mail-in ballots, it seems possible that he’ll refuse to leave the White House quietly. Some in Trump World have even made the outlandish suggestion that the Pennsylvania state legislature, controlled by Republicans, should override the election result and nominate their own slate of electors to choose the President.

But the President’s defeat isn’t the only part of this week’s election. In down-ballot races, Republicans outperformed their wildest expectations: while many predicted a bloodbath in the Senate, the Republicans have held on to their seats in the vast majority of competitive races.