The crowd was up in arms and wildly excited. At a gathering outside a north Georgia gun store on a sunny afternoon late last month, handguns mingled with baby strollers, soccer balls and “Run Herschel Run” ball caps. The crowd of about 200 elderly, mostly white Georgians made it clear they were all for Republican Herschel Walker in his bid to win a U.S. Senate seat this Tuesday. The reason he won their admiration — and their votes? One supporter, Helen Johnson, put it this way to CBC News: “Because it’s Herschel Walker.” Indeed, it cannot be overstated how big a deal Walker is in this situation. His heroics as a homegrown football star during college and then in the NFL came decades ago. But in Georgia his name remains legendary. Republicans are counting on that as they aim to win control of the Senate in the upcoming midterm elections, even though Walker’s campaign has been plagued by controversies that would likely rule out candidates in most other elections. Walker’s campaign rallies are filled with voters wearing jerseys with his old number, 34. His staff tries to ward off autograph seekers, but Walker tends to sign anything handed to him as he works the crowd after a speech. Sharpie in hand, he scribbles on trading cards, 8x10s, even the white stripes of footballs. WATCHES | Candidates face off in hotly contested Georgia Senate race:

Donald Trump’s looming influence in Georgia’s tight midterm elections

In the final days before the US midterm elections, it is clear that former US President Donald Trump’s influence looms large. In Georgia, Trump-backed Republican candidate Herschel Walker has become the focus of one of the most critical midterm races, and not just because of his high-profile endorsement.

Walker was adored by fans, reviled by critics

As a former sports star turned political candidate, he is adored. But these controversies continue to swirl and grow, and Walker’s critics condemn him daily. He has acknowledged his history of violence but insists he has undergone treatment. However, his ex-wife now appears in a campaign ad against Walker recounting the time he “held a gun to my temple and said he was going to blow my brains out”. Walker, known around the state for his football exploits, speaks during a campaign rally in Smyrna, Ga., on Thursday. (Todd Kirkland/The Associated Press) While Walker says he strongly opposes most abortions, two women are now calling him a hypocrite for campaigning on the issue and have come forward with evidence – denied by Walker – that he pressured them to have abortions (and/or paid for them). since it was intimate. with him. Last month, Walker’s son called out his father in a Twitter video that was seen by millions. “It’s all lies,” Christian Walker said in the post. “He has four children, four different women – he wasn’t home to raise one of them. He was out having sex with other women.” Walker signs a hat for a member of law enforcement at a campaign event in Carrollton, Ga., last month. (Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images) Walker has also publicly challenged laws aimed at fighting climate change, falsely claimed to be an FBI agent (he later said he was joking), described the cost of “grocery shopping” as a women’s issue, and has downplayed the science of evolution. At campaign rallies covered by CBC News, Walker attacked US President Joe Biden’s record on the economy while warning of “Chinese fentanyl in Hallowe’en candy” and public schools he says are “wide awake.” . He also mocked transgender people in the US Armed Forces. “They want to bring pronouns to the military,” he told the crowd at that rally outside the gun store. “My pronouns [are] sick and tired of you all talking about pronouns. I don’t even know what a pronoun is.” The crowd laughed and clapped. The outcome of the Georgia Senate race between Walker, left, and Warnock could end up determining control of the Senate. (Elijah Nouvelage, Megan Varner/Getty Images)

The Georgia contest may determine control of the Senate

Liberal talk show host Bill Maher called Walker “unfit for office” and a “f–king idiot.” But, in turn, conservative talk show host Dana Loesch said: “I don’t care if [Walker] who was paid to euthanize endangered eagles. I want control of the Senate.” Indeed, depending on how things play out on election night Tuesday in a small handful of other states, various scenarios suggest that the party that wins Georgia will win overall control of the Senate. If Walker tips the balance of power to Republicans, it would deeply complicate Biden’s agenda for perhaps the rest of his term. Several senior Republicans have rallied strongly to Walker’s side, despite the stories and the taunts. Former President Donald Trump endorsed him last year. To be clear, Walker may very well win. Political analyst Jason Nichols, a senior lecturer at the University of Maryland, describes Walker as “not an intellectual” and “someone who will be easily controlled” if he wins the Georgia Senate seat. Bishop worries about Walker’s rise because of what it means for American democracy when, in the name of Senate control, Republicans now stand so firmly behind such a candidate “because of a thirst for power, rather than looking for independent, intelligent leadership . “ “I find it not only disappointing. I find it terrifying,” Nichols said. Walker hugs former US President Donald Trump at a rally on September 25, 2021 in Perry, Ga. Trump endorsed Walker last year. (Ben Gray/The Associated Press)

“Democracy is on the ballot”

Walker’s opponent, incumbent Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock, called Walker an “extreme” and “frightening alternative.” “You have to know things to do this job,” Warnock told a crowd last month. Warnock is the first black man elected to the US Senate from Georgia and pastors the same Georgia church where civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. once made his name. Warnock has spent years pushing to expand health care coverage in Georgia and supports greater access to abortion and same-sex marriage. Last month, underscoring the stakes at stake in this election, former President Barack Obama rallied behind Warnock. “Democracy is on the ballot,” Obama said. He warned the crowd that if Republicans win power, they will further tighten restrictions on abortion. Warnock speaks at a campaign event in Clarkston, Ga., on Thursday. He is the first black man from Georgia ever elected to the US Senate. (Bob Andres/The Associated Press) “Who cares about you, who sees you, who believes in you?” Obama said. “That’s the choice in this election.” But Warnock also faces controversy, albeit on a much smaller scale than Walker. An anti-Warnock ad shows a police body camera video from 2020 of Warnock’s ex-wife in tears, telling officers she had run over her leg with his car during an argument. Police found no evidence of injury and did not press charges. At a rally in Augusta last week, Warnock told supporters his opponent was trying to “tarnish my name”. Warnock also urged supporters to “get out and vote – and pray”. Truck driver Geraldine Jordon was one of about 200 mostly African-Americans who took it. “I came here to support someone who I believe will work for me and my household,” she told CBC News. “Not [someone who] he just wants to seek to control it, to be able to control a nation of people.” But in the face of all the criticism against Walker, his supporters remain steadfast. “Anyone can be forgiven, as they were,” Walker supporter Sylvia Joyce told CBC News. “So don’t go looking for junk from the past.” Another Walker fan, Henry Desetta, said, “He’s a good Christian man.” WATCHES | What’s at stake in the US midterm elections:

Polls show Republican gains ahead of last weekend of US midterm election campaign

US President Joe Biden and Democratic Party leaders are scrambling to defend their party’s House and Senate seats in the final weekend before the US midterm elections.