Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock fends off primary challenge for Democratic nod

Sen. Raphael Warnock cruised to victory in Tuesday’s Georgia primaries, setting up a showdown against Herschel Walker in November.

Warnock, the Democratic incumbent, easily brushed back a challenge from Tamara Johnson-Shealey in his bid to secure a full six-year term in the US Senate.

The 52-year-old senior pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta was first sent to Washington by voters last year in a special election.

His decisive projected victory was called by the Associated Press just 40 minutes after the polls closed.

Warnock’s victory sets up a critical race in the general election that could decide the balance of power in the Senate.

Herschel Walker, the University of Georgia football star and favored candidate of ex-President Donald Trump, won Tuesday’s Republican primary, and held a slight edge in a head-to-head matchup against Warnock, according to recent polls.