Who is Kelly Loeffler? 4 things to know about the Georgia senator
Loeffler began her term in January but is seeking to secure a full term
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., is battling to keep her seat in the Senate in a runoff election scheduled to take place on Tuesday.
Loeffler was appointed by the state’s governor to fill a vacant seat left by Sen. Johnny Isakson, who retired at the end of 2018.
None of the roughly 20 candidates got more than 50% of the vote in November, which sent the race to a runoff election.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Loeffler began her term last January but will face first-time political challenger Rev. Raphael Warnock, a Democrat, as she seeks to secure a full term.
Both of Georgia's Senate seats are up for grabs in Tuesday's elections, which has garnered national attention because the partisan balance in the Senate is at stake. At least 3 million Georgia residents have already voted early in the runoff elections.
Here are four things to know about the Georgia Republican:
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}1. She's a staunch Trump supporter
Loeffler aligned herself very closely with the ideals and policies of President Trump, taking flak for saying she doesn’t disagree with anything the president has said or done.
(Getty Images)
She also denied knowledge of the "Access Hollywood" tape featuring a lewd conversation between the show's former host, Billy Bush, and Trump that was released during the 2016 campaign cycle.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Loeffler even appeared to align herself with Georgia Republican and incoming congressional member Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has hawked QAnon conspiracy theories.
SEN. LOEFFLER ON GEORGIA EMERGING AS UNLIKELY BATTLEGROUND IN 2020
2. She's a former Fortune 500 executive
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Georgia senator joined the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), which is the parent of the New York Stock Exchange, in 2002. She served as a top executive and also led a cryptocurrency subsidiary.
Her exit came under scrutiny after she was given about $9 million from the company upon her departure, whereby the company sped up the vesting of compensation, as reported by The New York Times.
She is married to Jeffrey Sprecher, who is the founder and CEO of ICE.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Loeffler worked at a number of other well-known companies, including Citi and Toyota.
3. She owns a stake in a WNBA team
Loeffler is a co-owner of the WNBA Atlanta Dream, the first women-owned sports team in Georgia.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}She joined the team in 2011, but her transition into politics has ruffled feathers with the league.
Loeffler referred to civil unrest as "mob rule" earlier this summer and rebuked calls to defund the police following protests over the death of Rayshard Brooks, an unarmed Black man who was killed by police at an Atlanta-area Wendy’s.
She also criticized the WNBA’s decision to dedicate its season to the Black Lives Matter movement and said the country needs less politics in sports.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The players' union pushed for her to be removed and it has continued to advocate for her to sell her stake.
Players on the team even began wearing shirts supporting Loeffler’s political opponents.
4. Is she the richest lawmaker?
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Loeffler and her husband hold a stake valued at around $500 million in the Intercontinental Exchange, as noted by Forbes. The publication also estimates that the couple is worth somewhere between $800 million to as much as $1 billion, which would make them the richest couple on Capitol Hill.