With results from this year's midterm elections still being calculated across the country, nationwide attention is centering on the U.S. Senate election in Georgia, which saw both major candidates fail to achieve 50 percent of the vote.
Incumbent Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock and Republican nominee Herschel Walker will face each other in a two-way runoff election on Dec. 6, which will decide who ultimately wins the hotly-contested Senate seat.
Georgia and Louisiana are the only two states that require runoff elections in general elections in which no candidate receives a majority of the vote, according to Ballotpedia.
The Democrats currently hold a majority in the Senate, thanks to winning two runoff elections in Georgia in January 2021. This year's race potentially offers a striking similarity with the potential to decide which party controls the Senate.
While nationwide attention is on the Georgia race, runoff elections are part of the electoral process in Chicago for municipal elections.
In the last two mayoral elections held in Chicago, two candidates from crowded fields advanced to a runoff election that ultimately decided the next mayor.
In 2015, incumbent Mayor Rahm Emanuel faced a stiff challenge from then-Cook County Commissioner Chuy Garcia. Emanuel would win reelection with over 56 percent of the vote, carrying 36 of the city's 50 wards.
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In 2019, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle advanced to a runoff against Lori Lightfoot, who was previously president of the city's Police Board. Lightfoot won the runoff election in a landslide with nearly 74 percent of the vote, winning all 50 wards.
10 major candidates have launched campaigns for the upcoming Chicago mayoral election in 2023, decreasing the likelihood of a single candidate capturing 50 percent of the vote.
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