US Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, speaks during a 'Get Out The Vote' campaign event with Democratic Senate candidates Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in Garden City, Georgia on January 3, 2021. Bloomberg
US Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, speaks during a 'Get Out The Vote' campaign event with Democratic Senate candidates Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in Garden City, Georgia on January 3, 2021. Bloomberg
US Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, speaks during a 'Get Out The Vote' campaign event with Democratic Senate candidates Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in Garden City, Georgia on January 3, 2021. Bl
There is a lot riding on a pair of elections in the southern American state of Georgia, as it votes to elect its senators two months after the general election. In the first round of voting, which took place during the November presidential election, none of Georgia’s candidates for senate earned the 50 per cent state mandated share of the vote to win.
Now, politics, history and geography are coming into collision in the state. The past and the future are in a furious tussle. Georgia, which last elected a Democrat to the Senate two decades ago and has never picked a black senator, could now call time on the status quo. Or not.
Some say Georgia’s polls straddle two political seasons. As a runoff from the November election, Georgia could legitimately be described as the last poll of the presidential election year 2020.
But it could equally be said to be the first US election of 2021, one that sets the tone for what happens in Joe Biden’s administration.
The race has drawn national and international attention and massive spending – nearly $550 million. It has also pulled in top-flight campaigners, not least president-elect Joe Biden, his vice-presidential pick Kamala Harris and President Donald Trump.
The stakes may never have been higher. Control of the senate and Mr Biden’s agenda hang in the balance. If even one of Georgia’s incumbent Republican senators wins, Mr Biden’s Democratic Party will be forced into a minority in the upper chamber of Congress. In that case, the Republican-majority Senate would be able to curtail the boldness of the incoming president’s initiatives and block key nominations to his cabinet and the judiciary. But if the Democrats win both seats, the Senate would be split, 50-50. As the US vice president is also president of the Senate, that would give Ms Harris the tie-breaking vote.
According to University of Georgia political scientist Charles Bullock, the twin elections are rare. It is something that “has never happened before and probably never will again. Two seats, from one state, in one election, that will decide senate control. It’s just unprecedented."
And wildly unpredictable as well. There is every indication that Republicans Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue are in tight contests against their Democratic rivals, black pastor Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff. In November, Mr Biden became the first Democratic presidential candidate to win Georgia in almost three decades.
Now, voter enthusiasm is high, something that is considered surprising for a run-off election. As a politically tumultuous year drew to a close, roughly 3 million Georgians had voted early, setting a new state record for turnout in a run-off.
Add to that a new and riotous sense of enhanced voter mobilisation in person and by every social media channel available. More than 70,000 new voters have registered in Georgia since November 3. Civic engagement groups across the state have aggressively pushed to turn out black voters. An Indian-American political organisation has run a multi-million-dollar campaign in the state to remind Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders of their potentially decisive role in Georgia and, this time around, in national politics, too. In December, Mr Ossoff, a fresh-faced, millennial filmmaker and Democratic challenger, made his campaign debut on TikTok. The videos have gone viral by parodying popular memes and emphasising issues, such as student loan debt relief and a higher minimum wage, that resonate with young voters. The buzz has been intense, with Georgia’s teenage influencers responding with voting-related videos of their own. Some have been inserting reminders – sandwiched between fashion videos and humorous memes – on the senate’s role in helping Mr Biden enact liberal changes.
And then there is Mr Warnock, a flamboyant preacher at an Atlanta church that has a long and prominent history in the civil rights movement. The pastor has used election advertising in a clever and unusual way, to neutralise racial stereotypes as well as Republican efforts to explicitly tie him to black radicalism. Two of his adverts, featuring his pet beagle, revolve around a little-discussed issue: racism about dog ownership.
Wilbur, a 6-month-old French bulldog, with owners Seth Westfall and Amy Noland in Rabbit Hash, Kentucky, US on November 13, 2020. Wilbur was elected the Mayor of Rabbit hash in November's election cycle. The town has elected a canine to the office of mayor since 1998. AP
Research by California political science professor Michael Tesler shows that most Americans believe that black people are more likely to own “scary” breeds, such as rottweilers and pit bulls, while white people generally favour more approachable pets, such as golden retrievers, collies, Labradors and Dalmatians. Accordingly, analysts say that Mr Warnock’s “deracialising” adverts “will be taught in race politics classes for years to come”.
Perhaps. It’s not clear how effective the Warnock advertisements, Ossoff TikTok videos and broader voter-mobilisation efforts will eventually prove in a state that has been solidly Republican for decades.
L-R: Senator Kelly Loeffler, Senator David Perdue, and White House senior adviser Ivanka Trump at a campaign event in Milton, Georgia, December 21, 2020. Reuters
That said, the Trump factor is increasingly complicating matters for the Republican Party, as it tries to hold on to Georgia’s crucial senate seats. Mr Trump, long seen as his party’s biggest driver of turnout, has been sending mixed messages to Georgia’s voters ever since he lost the state to Mr Biden by just under 12,000 votes. He has baselessly called the Senate races “illegal and invalid”, sown doubt about the security of elections in Georgia and in general and has openly feuded for weeks with the state’s Republican governor and head of elections for their refusal to reverse Mr Biden’s win.
Some say Georgia's polls straddle two political seasons
On Sunday, a leaked recording of an hour-long phone call had Mr Trump putting immense pressure and even threatening Georgia's top officials. The Republicans might lose the senate seats, he said, "a lot of people aren't going out to vote…because they hate what you did to the President". Even before that extraordinary audio was heard around the world, veteran Republican pollster Frank Luntz was warning that Mr Trump's behaviour could prove costly by depressing Republican turnout.
Whatever happens, the results will probably not be known for days, given that it took more than a week to call the November 3 election in Georgia. The state may be the final episode in an American political thriller that promised to be nail-biting right to the end.
Rashmee Roshan Lall is a columnist for The National
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Panipat
Director Ashutosh Gowariker
Produced Ashutosh Gowariker, Rohit Shelatkar, Reliance Entertainment
The calling app is available to download on Google Play and Apple App Store
To successfully install ToTok, users are asked to enter their phone number and then create a nickname.
The app then gives users the option add their existing phone contacts, allowing them to immediately contact people also using the application by video or voice call or via message.
Users can also invite other contacts to download ToTok to allow them to make contact through the app.
Goalkeepers: Ibrahim Alma, Mahmoud Al Youssef, Ahmad Madania. Defenders: Ahmad Al Salih, Moayad Ajan, Jehad Al Baour, Omar Midani, Amro Jenyat, Hussein Jwayed, Nadim Sabagh, Abdul Malek Anezan. Midfielders: Mahmoud Al Mawas, Mohammed Osman, Osama Omari, Tamer Haj Mohamad, Ahmad Ashkar, Youssef Kalfa, Zaher Midani, Khaled Al Mobayed, Fahd Youssef. Forwards: Omar Khribin, Omar Al Somah, Mardik Mardikian.
'The Lost Daughter'
Director: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Starring: Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Dakota Johnson
Rating: 4/5
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The biog
Name: Maitha Qambar
Age: 24
Emirate: Abu Dhabi
Education: Master’s Degree
Favourite hobby: Reading
She says: “Everyone has a purpose in life and everyone learns from their experiences”
A – Dubai College, Deira International School, Al Ain Amblers, Warriors B – Dubai English Speaking College, Repton Royals, Jumeirah College, Gems World Academy C – British School Al Khubairat, Abu Dhabi Harlequins, Dubai Hurricanes, Al Yasmina Academy D – Dubai Exiles, Jumeirah English Speaking School, English College, Bahrain Colts
Recent winners
2018 – Dubai College 2017 – British School Al Khubairat 2016 – Dubai English Speaking School 2015 – Al Ain Amblers 2014 – Dubai College
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened. He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia. Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”. Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Islay Robinson, group chief executive of mortgage broker Enness Global, offers his advice on buying property in today's market.
While many have been quick to call a market collapse, this simply isn’t what we’re seeing on the ground. Many pockets of the global property market, including London and the UAE, continue to be compelling locations to invest in real estate.
While an air of uncertainty remains, the outlook is far better than anyone could have predicted. However, it is still important to consider the wider threat posed by Covid-19 when buying bricks and mortar.
Anything with outside space, gardens and private entrances is a must and these property features will see your investment keep its value should the pandemic drag on. In contrast, flats and particularly high-rise developments are falling in popularity and investors should avoid them at all costs.
Attractive investment property can be hard to find amid strong demand and heightened buyer activity. When you do find one, be prepared to move hard and fast to secure it. If you have your finances in order, this shouldn’t be an issue.
Lenders continue to lend and rates remain at an all-time low, so utilise this. There is no point in tying up cash when you can keep this liquidity to maximise other opportunities.
Keep your head and, as always when investing, take the long-term view. External factors such as coronavirus or Brexit will present challenges in the short-term, but the long-term outlook remains strong.
Finally, keep an eye on your currency. Whenever currency fluctuations favour foreign buyers, you can bet that demand will increase, as they act to secure what is essentially a discounted property.
Expert advice
“Join in with a group like Cycle Safe Dubai or TrainYAS, where you’ll meet like-minded people and always have support on hand.”
Stewart Howison, co-founder of Cycle Safe Dubai and owner of Revolution Cycles
“When you sweat a lot, you lose a lot of salt and other electrolytes from your body. If your electrolytes drop enough, you will be at risk of cramping. To prevent salt deficiency, simply add an electrolyte mix to your water.”
Cornelia Gloor, head of RAK Hospital’s Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy Centre
“Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can ride as fast or as far during the summer as you do in cooler weather. The heat will make you expend more energy to maintain a speed that might normally be comfortable, so pace yourself when riding during the hotter parts of the day.”
Chandrashekar Nandi, physiotherapist at Burjeel Hospital in Dubai
“I was in complete disgust at the fact that only one person was to be charged for Bloody Sunday.
“Somebody later said to me, 'you just watch - they'll drop the charge against him'. And sure enough, the charges against Soldier F would go on to be dropped.
“It's pretty hard to think that 50 years on, the State is still covering up for what happened on Bloody Sunday.”
