Here are the main events that occurred in Politics this week:
1. Raphael Warnock Wins Re-election In Runoff Race, Officially Closing Out 2022 Election Season
Senator Raphael Warnock has won reelection in Georgia, the Associated Press reports, giving the Democrats a 51-49 majority in the US Senate. Senator Warnock defeated first-time candidate Herschel Walker, whose campaign was beset by allegations that he paid two women to have abortions. Senator Warnock finished ahead of Walker in the election on November 8, but fell short of the majority needed to avoid a runoff. Former President Barack Obama, who had campaigned for Warnock earlier in the race, returned to Georgia during the runoff to urge voters to come back to the polls.
2. Protesters Detail Mass Sexual Abuse In Iranian Prisons By Regime
Women in Iran detained for protesting against the ruling regime are suffering sexual violence carried out by agents of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) intelligence agency, as reported on December 1. One woman from the city of Bukan in West Azerbaijan province had told her fellow prison detainees she had been raped while being interrogated by members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) intelligence agency, the outlet IranWire reported. The 22-year-old was transferred to a hospital because of her mental and physical condition but upon release, committed suicide, according to the outlet.
3. Iranian Regime Insiders Begin To Turn Against Government Due To Response To Protests
The former Iranian former president Mohammad Khatami has urged the current government to be more lenient with protesters, amid ongoing nationwide demonstrations representing the biggest challenge to the Islamic Republic in decades. Khatami, who previously served as Iranian President from 1997-2005 and was aligned with the reformist wing of the Iranian government said the government must listen to the demonstrators before it is too late, in a message ahead of Students’ Day, which marks the anniversary of the murder of three university students in 1953 by Iranian police under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi’s regime. “I advise the officials to appreciate this presence and instead of dealing with it inappropriately, take a softer approach and listen to them and with their help, recognize the wrong aspects of governance before it is too late for them to move towards good governance,” said Khatami, regarding the government’s handling of the protests.
4. US Economy Adds Over 250,00 New Jobs In November As Inflation Begins To Slow
The US Economy added 263,000 jobs in November, defying aggressive action from the Federal Reserve to cool the economy and bring down decades-high inflation. The unemployment rate held steady at 3.7%, according to the Labor Department, which released the latest monthly jobs snapshot on December 2. Economists surveyed by Refinitiv had expected the pace of hiring to slow to a gain of only 200,000 jobs in November and the unemployment rate to stay flat at 3.7%. Some of the largest monthly job gains were in the leisure and hospitality sector, as well as health care. The hot jobs report also showed an unexpected spike in average hourly earnings, another knock against the Fed’s efforts to rein in inflation by cooling demand. Officials at the central bank have expressed concern about rising wages keeping inflation elevated.
