right now on "america this morning," georgia on everyone's mind. >> i am going to the senate to work for all of georgia. >> the vote tally overnight and two runoff elections that will decide control of the u.s. senate. issues including more economic stimulus checks and raising the minimum wage at stake. the surprises and the nail-biting results. we're live in atlanta. plus, the historic day about to begin on capitol hill. protesters clashing with police hours before republicans try to block certification of joe biden's election win. the covid crisis takes a new turn overnight. the new recommendation from the white house coronavirus task force as a new virus mutation

spreads and this morning how some states are hoping to speed up vaccinations. kenosha on edge. prosecutors decide not to charge the officer who shot jacob blake seven times in the back. how they're defending the decision. breaking overnight, health concerns from music mogul dr. dre. turn back time? why scientists wanted to shorten the length of one minute. and forget the fitting room. how amazon is using photos of your body to make custom fitted clothes. good wednesday morning, everyone. i'm mona kosar abdi. >> i'm alex presha. kenneth moton is off. we begin with the breaking news from georgia. results still coming in from those two runoff elections. >> abc news is employee correcting that reverend raphael warnock has defeated republican incumbent kelly loeffler. as can you see the margin was close, 51% to 49%. >> meanwhile, an even closer race between democrat jon ossoff

and gop incumbent senator david perdue is still too close to call, but ossoff is holding a razor thin lead. >> abc's elizabeth schulze begins our coverage from atlanta right now. elizabeth, good morning. >> reporter: hey, good morning, mona. a major victory for democrats here in georgia. reverend raphael warnock will be the first black senator in the state's history. this morning, democrats one step closer to taking control of the u.s. senate. abc news now projects democratic challenger reverend raphael warnock will defeat republican incumbent senator kelly loeffler in one of georgia's runoff races. >> and every day i'm in the united states senate, i will fight for you. >> reporter: warnock is a prominent black preacher at ebenezer baptist church in atlanta, a pulpit that once belonged to dr. martin luther king jr. in a victory speech warnock acknowledged his historic role as georgia's first black elected senator. >> i come before you tonight as a man who knows that the

improbable journey that led me to this place in this historic moment in america could only happen here. >> reporter: but his opponent, a staunch ally of president trump, is not giving in. >> we have a path to victory and we're staying on it. that's right. >> reporter: the other race between democrat jon ossoff and republican david perdue remains too close to call separated by just a couple thousand votes. democrats need to win both seats to flip the senate. >> this was a political earthquake in georgia. it leaves democrats with the very real possibility of taking control of the senate for the first two years of joe biden's term, and it punctures the myth of infallibility, of unbeatability that president trump has created inside the republican party. >> reporter: president trump has been a constant presence in the election here chastising the state's election officials and claiming without evidence the november votes were rigged. some republicans fear the president's claims may have suppressed gop turnout. >> after the election for the president, it was just kind of

like, wow, did our vote count? >> reporter: now election officials here in georgia say the final results could come this afternoon, but they're also sending a reminder that candidates can request a recount if the results are within 0.5% margin, so we could have another recount ahead there, especially in that very tight race, mona. >> elizabeth in atlanta, thank you. now to the history being made in washington today as republicans try to stop the certification of joe biden's election victory. we've now learned about a conversation between president trump and vice president pence who will oversee today's certification. abc's faith abubey joins us with the details this morning. good morning, faith. >> reporter: hey, good morning, mona. tensions are high here in washington. in just a few hours congress will convene to certify the presidential election results for joe biden but president trump meanwhile pressuring his vice president to overturn the election results. this morning abc news has learned vice president mike pence has informed president

trump that he does not have the authority to challenge the result of the 2020 election. the message coming after trump falsely claimed on twitter that the vice president, quote, has the power to reject fraudulently chosen electors. later today pence will oversee a joint session of congress where he'll be required to announce joe biden as president-elect. trump saying this on monday. >> i hope mike pence comes through for us. he's a great guy. of course, if he doesn't come through, i won't like him quite as much. >> reporter: the president is now denying that pence told him he lacks the power to overturn the election claiming in a statement overnight that they both agree pence, quote, has the power to act. while some republican lawmakers plan to challenge biden's victory during today's session, the effort is being viewed as political theater certain to fail. the vice president's role is laid out by the constitution and is only ceremonial. >> and donald trump somehow believes that because pence will be holding the gavel when the votes are counted, that he has

the power to overturn the election. pence has made it clear to trump that he does not have this power, and i am told that donald trump is prepared to go after his own vice president and go after him hard if he does as expected and follows the rules. >> reporter: in the meantime, blocks from the white house overnight scuffles breaking out as trump supporters gather in support of his efforts to stay in power. the national guard now providing, quote, traffic control in the city with more demonstrations expected today and a bit of drama unfolding in pennsylvania right now. republicans voted to not see the democratic lawmaker elected in november because his victory is being challenged in court. mona. >> faith, thank you. let's turn now to the pandemic. abc news has obtained a memo from the white house coronavirus task force urging states to vaccinate people over the age of 65 immediately because of the new variant of the virus that's

spreading in the u.s., but it's clear that states are running into big challenges. this morning, frustrations mounting as long lines, shortages and confusion surround the covid vaccine rollout. >> we're just going to say at 1:00 that everybody go home. >> reporter: at this site in miami security guards had to tell people waiting in line for hours that the facility didn't have enough shots for everyone with an appointment. >> they told us that they don't have enough resources to give us the shots. >> reporter: the overbooking blamed on a computer glitch. in wisconsin a private practice physician says she hasn't been able to get any vaccines for her staff. >> i don't think that the rollout really took us into consideration. i have tried contacting my governor and senator. i basically gave up. >> reporter: about 4.8 million vaccinations have been administered nationwide, not even a quarter of the government's goal. dr. anthony fauci's urging patience. >> it was launched right in the middle of the holiday season of christmas and new year's in

which many of the clinics were not at full operational capacity during that time, so i would think if we look at what happens in the next week to a week and a half towards mid-january. >> reporter: now states including maryland, north carolina and arizona are activating the national guard to help with vaccine distribution. california, the epicenter of the crisis, is requesting 500 additional medical personnel from the federal government. after officials said the navy's "mercy" hospital ship is unavailable because of routine maintenance. in the meantime, georgia has joined california and three other states in confirming the arrival of the more contagious coronavirus variant first seen in britain. some california funeral homes are using refrigerator trucks saying they have six times the usual number of bodies. one mortician telling families to buy ice to keep their loved one's bodies cold. a covid outbreak at a hospital in san jose linked to an inflatable costume like this one worn during a christmas

celebration is now blamed for one death and at least 51 infections. >> this random occurrence from the leak in concert with the random movements creates an unpredictable flow. airflow on droplets can give these droplets superpowers, make them smaller and lighter and keep them suspended in the air and potentially blow them around, and that's what we call aerosol generation. >> reporter: and back to the vaccine, florida's governor has announced a partnership with a public supermarket chain to help distribute doses. breaking overnight, dozens of pro-democracy activists have been arrested in hong kong. they include former lawmakers and an american human rights attorney. hong kong's security minister said the awrested were made for interfering with government duties by taking part in last year's unofficial primaries. now time for a look at your wednesday weather. another day of heavy rain, mountain snow and gusty winds for northern california and the pacific northwest. 18 inches of snow is possible in the cascades.

closer to the coast some areas have seen four times the usual amount of rain so far this month creating a risk for landslides. avalanche warnings have been issued in montana, idaho and utah. salt lake city gets to 40 degrees today. low 70s in southern california. 30s around the great lakes and new england. coming up, one woman's shocking discovery inside her garden. a relic dating back centuries. but first the state of emergency in kenosha after prosecutors decide not to charge the police officer who shot jacob blake seven times in the back. and later, the news about kim kardashian that's got

you're on it. exercising often and eating healthy? yup, on it there too. you may think you're doing all you can to manage type 2 diabetes and heart disease... ...but could your medication do more to lower your heart risk? jardiance can reduce the risk of cardiovascular death for adults who also have known heart disease. so, it could help save your life from a heart attack or stroke. and it lowers a1c. jardiance can cause serious side effects including dehydration, genital yeast or urinary tract infections, and sudden kidney problems. ketoacidosis is a serious side effect that may be fatal. a rare, but life-threatening bacterial infection in the skin of the perineum could occur. stop taking jardiance and call your doctor right away if you have symptoms of this bacterial infection, ketoacidosis, or an allergic reaction and don't take it if you're on dialysis or have severe kidney problems. taking jardiance with a sulfonylurea

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kenosha, wisconsin, overnight. it comes after prosecutors announce no charges in the police shooting of jacob blake. this morning, blake's family is responding as the district attorney explains the decision. here's abc's megan tevrizian. >> reporter: this morning, kenosha under a state of emergency after the city's top prosecutor decided not to file charges against the officer who shot jacob blake in the back seven times. [ crowd chanting ] >> reporter: overnight peaceful protesters taking to the streets as the national guard rolled in bracing for another potential wave of unrest. in the decision not to charge officer rusten sheskey, the d.a. said investigators reviewed hundreds of pages of police report s and watched dozens of hours of video. prosecutors insist blake was armed with a knife and officers thought he was trying to kidnap a child. >> we say with confidence based on blake's admission, based on

all the officers saying it and this video evidence he clearly is armed with a knife. >> reporter: the incident sparking national outrage in august after cell phone video captured what appearedcaptured e officer sheskey shooting blake in the back while his children were in the back of his suv. his family insisted blake was not armed and said the knife was on the floor inside the suv. blake was paralyzed in the shooting. his family is now promising to take civil action calling the prosecutor's decision not to file charges disturbing. >> we, the blake family, are asking this city, this county, this state and this nation to rise up in a nonviolent civic uprising to let our friends and family know there's a new sheriff in town. >> reporter: all officers involved in the shooting remain on administrative leave. alex, mona. >> megan, thank you.

turning overseas, a stunning discovery by a british woman. take a look at this. this marble sl her garden is actually a rare engraving that dates back 1900 years to the roman empire. an analysis revealed the encryption was carved near greece. it's unclear how it ended up in england but it'll soon be put up for auction this spring. >> wow. coming up, why scientists want to shorten the official length of one minute. we'll explain. but first the breaking news overnight about music mogul dr. dre. many people with type 2 diabetes like emily lower their blood sugar. a majority of adults who took ozempic® reached an a1c under 7 and maintained it. here's your a1c. oh! my a1c is under 7! (announcer) and you may lose weight. adults who took ozempic® lost on average up to 12 pounds. i lost almost 12 pounds! oh! (announcer) for those also with known heart disease, ozempic® lowers

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breaking overnight, rap icon and music mogul dr. dre says he will be out of the hospital and back hbrain aneurysm. the 55-year-old was rushed to an l.a. hospital tuesday. doctors are doing tests to determine what caused the bleeding. in a statement overnight he says he's doing great. this month's grammy awards have been postponed until march because of the coronavirus. the recording academy cited the growing crisis in los angeles with hospitals on the verge of rationing care. more challenges this morning in the covid vaccine rollout. it turns out many health care workers are saying no to the vaccine including 50% of nurses in one area of california, many citing safety concerns. earlier i spoke with dr. ryan ribeiro about the latest on the vaccine and the spread of the virus. let's start with the breaking news overnight. the white house task force urging states to vaccinate people over 65 as soon as possible.

this as we're also learning that there may be a new mutation of the virus here in the u.s. in addition to the uk variant. what is your take on this. >> you know, i think their assessment is right that this third wave has been very aggressive, much more so than the last two. i don't know if we have positive evidence of a u.s.-based more virulent version of this virus, but it's certainly possible. i mean it's the nature of viruses that evolved towards transmissibility and when you have one like this so widespread, there will be a lot of variants around. you know, i don't think we have any reason to believe any new variants would be less susceptible to the vaccine, so the plan i think in that respect remains the same. as far as their admonition to really vaccinate, you know, older americans and those who are at risk immediately i just couldn't really agree more. something they said was that the vaccines shouldn't be in freezers. they should be in arms. >> dr. ribeiro, you were on on the ground in hard hit california. can you tell us what you're seeing in terms of the patients

being admitted and who is getting infected. any new trends to report? we just come out of the holidays and during that period of time there were a lot of people gathering together so what we saw on the ground was a lot of entire families, unfortunately, being infected from babies to grandparents and very often it was the grandparents who fared the worst in that group but it's not just the grandparents. i am admit people to the hospital who are in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s pretty much every shift at this point. we have a lot a hope because the vaccine is going out but the virus doesn't really take a day off. >> our thanks to dr. ribeiro. in sports the heisman trophy was awarded last night to alabama wide receiver devonta smith. he's the first wide receiver since desmond howard to be named college football's best and beat out three quarterbacks for the honor. the latest on the two megalottery jackpots up for grabs. how amazon is using photos of your body to make custom fitted clothes. who've got their eczema under control. hd 8.

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♪ time to check "the pulse" and we begin with the possibility of shorter days on the horizon. >> scientists may be ready to adjust the atomic clock they're considering shortening the minute to 59 seconds. that's because earth is actually rotating faster than usual and the one-second difference could set things straight. >> they've tinkered with time in the past when the planet was spinning slower. >> hmm. next a bombshell lighting up social media through the night. >> kanye west and kim kardashian west are reportedly getting a divorce. the power couple have been married for seven years and four children together. >> it's believed they've been living apart for months. next amazon is making clothes exclusively just for you. >> that's right. the retailer is helping people find a better fit with virtual

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anything is possible. now at 5:00, democrats one step closer to taking control of the u.s. senate with a historic win in georgia. the other race still too close to call this morning. we're live with the latest. overnight clashes right outside the white house. it comes as congress meets to certify joe biden as the winner of the presidential election today. and serious concerns about covid-19 vaccine distribution across the state. the plea for patience. also lottery fever. the major money on the line in the powerball tonight and where one person is waking up $2 million richer right here in the bay area. i'm excited for them. >> it's not one of us. >> no, nope. >> you wouldn't tell if it was you. >> that's true. poker face. good morning. it is wednesday, january 6th. >> guess what'sback? re