Widespread praise on social media poured out for Democrat Jon Ossoff on Wednesday long before he was declared the winner of the Georgia Senate seat held by Republican David Perdue since 2015.

Lawmakers, celebrities, professional athletes and others across the nation shared thoughts on the auspicious election of the 33-year-old senator-elect, who became the youngest candidate to win a U.S. Senate seat since Joe Biden was sworn in for his first term in 1973 at age 30.

The majority liberal voices hailed the fact that Ossoff’s win in Tuesday’s special runoff election had handed the Democrats a triple crown — with a majority in both houses of Congress and Biden in the White House.

NBC and CBS called the race shortly after 4 p.m., but the news was overshadowed as supporters of President Donald Trump, motivated by false claims of election fraud, stormed the U.S. Capitol in Washington during the final certification of Electoral College votes for Biden.

“It is with humility that I thank the people of Georgia for electing me to serve you in the United States Senate,” Ossoff said Wednesday in his victory statement.

However, messages of congratulations for the senator-elect had already begun pouring in on social media hours earlier, even as the race remained razor thin and final votes were still being counted.

Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris congratulated Ossoff and Raphael Warnock.

Some personalities had a sense of humor about Ossoff’s victory.

About the Author

Keep Reading

In April, Gov. Brian Kemp signed two bills designed to overhaul rules for civil lawsuits in Georgia. (Olivia Bowdoin for the AJC)

Credit: Olivia Bowdoin for the AJC

Featured

A new Plane Train car is seen at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport Maintenance Facility in Atlanta on Wednesday, May 7, 2025. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com