Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., said Saturday she tested negative for the coronavirus and will move full steam ahead to support confirming Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett.
Loeffler’s negative test results come just a day after two of her staffers tested positive for COVID-19.
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“The senator “is more energized than ever to vote to confirm Amy Coney Barrett as the next Supreme Court Justice on Monday before returning home and traveling the state to meet with hardworking Georgians,” a spokesperson said in a statement.
Despite the Democratic boycott of a vote to approve Barrett’s nomination on Thursday, the GOP-controlled Senate pushed through, paving the way for her confirmation.
Democrats have resisted confirming a Supreme Court justice to replace the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg prior to Nov. 3, instead insisting that the vacancy should be filled after the election — a point that has not been a deterrent to Republicans.
The GOP used the same argument to justify its refusal to consider President Barack Obama’s nomination of Merrick Garland in 2016 after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia nine months before the election.
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Only one Republican, Maine Sen. Susan Collins, is a certain “no” vote on Barrett. A second Republican, Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, has said she opposes filling the seat before the election.
Still, sparring between both parties continues and Democrats objecting to the nomination are expected to force multiple floor votes over the weekend, potentially keeping in Washington Republican senators who would otherwise be at home campaigning a mere 10 days before the election.
Loeffler, whose political leanings have veered further right from more moderate Republican stances in the past, could face a contentious runoff for her Senate seat if neither Democratic challenger Raphael Warnock nor she garner more than 50% of the votes on Nov. 3.
She must also overcome a primary rival in her own party, GOP Rep. Doug Collins, a four-term congressman and one of Trump’s most visible defenders in the U.S. House who is also campaigning for a spot in the Senate.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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