Georgia senators hold 1st runoff rally in a packed, windowless room as coronavirus cases spike

If there's ever been a time not to brag about "huge crowds" at a political rally, it's now.

In Georgia and across the country, COVID-19 cases are spiking at rates that haven't been seen in months, leading some states to implement new shutdowns and gathering bans. But dozens of supporters of Georgia's Republican senators, approximately half of them maskless, still gathered Wednesday in a windowless room as both senators prepare for runoff races in January, CNN reports.

Both of Georgia's Republican senators, Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, failed to get a majority of the vote in their re-election races last week and will face runoffs against Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, respectively. GOP senators are now rallying around Loeffler and Perdue, with Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) joining Loeffler for Wednesday's rally to "save our majority." There was no social distancing or virus protections apparent at the rally, which happened in Cobb County, an Atlanta suburb that's among Georgia's counties with the most COVID-19 cases.

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Georgia isn't alone in seeing COVID-19 cases skyrocket. Case counts are spiking in cities around the country more drastically than they have in months, even before potential spread from celebrations in the wake of Joe Biden's election can be taken into account. Kathryn Krawczyk