Jon Ossoff roasts David Perdue with chicken tweet after he ducks debate
‘I had to ask an empty podium a question’
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Your support makes all the difference.After standing alone on a debate stage in Georgia, Democratic senatorial candidate Jon Ossoff roasted his Republican incumbent opponent, David Perdue, with a simple tweet that came in the form of a chicken emoji.
No words were needed alongside a photo the Democrat posted of himself standing alone on the debate stage following the event held during the weekend ahead of the state’s upcoming runoff elections. Both Mr Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, another Republican incumbent, are facing challenges from Mr Ossoff and Raphael Wornock, respectively.
The photo showed Mr Ossoff pointing his hand towards the empty podium he stood alongside, which should have been occupied by Mr Perdue, at the Atlanta Press Club.
His Sunday night tweet quickly went viral, receiving more than 115,000 likes by Monday afternoon.
The 33-year-old candidate has successfully used social media in recent months to draw national media attention to his campaign, which polls said could be within reach of unseating his GOP opponent in the reliably-red state. His campaign has now reportedly turned to platforms like Tik Tok and Snapchat in the hopes of recruiting young voters to the polls.
Addressing the empty podium next to him on Sunday, Mr Ossoff called Mr Perdue a “coward” and vowed to represent all Georgians.
At one point, Mr Ossoff was asked by a debate moderator what questions he would have for the senator had he shown up to the runoff debate.
“I think what I would ask him is why he continues to oppose $1,200 stimulus checks for the American people at this moment of crisis," the Democrat responded. “Why he fought against them in the first place, and why he isn't in Washington right now championing direct financial relief."
Mr Perdue’s campaign manager later defended the decision not to attend the event, noting how they “already had two debates in this election” in an interview with the Associated Press.
Ben Fry, campaign manager to Mr Perdue, added: “We're going to take our message about what's at stake if Democrats have total control of Congress directly to the people.”
Tweeting later, Mr Ossoff wrote: “I had to ask an empty podium a question.”
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