Georgia voters on Tuesday cast ballots in an election that should have far-reaching consequences on the next two years. The results of two crucial runoff elections will both determine which party controls the upper chamber and the efficacy of President-elect Joe Biden's administration.

Democrats Jon Ossoff and the Rev. Raphael Warnock are challenging incumbent Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, respectively, in the highly contested races. Polls close at 7 p.m. ET.

If Republicans keep just one of the seats, they would maintain a majority and a commanding check on the incoming administration. Democrats would have to win both seats to take control of the Senate. Although those victories would constitute a tie for the Senate majority, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris would cast any tie-breaking votes.

The high-stakes state of play — against the backdrop of President Trump’s refusal to accept the election results and his controversial call to Georgia’s secretary of state — have served to create two of the most expensive Senate races and send a record amount of money into Georgia’s political machines.

Atlanta resident Stephanie Aluko told the Guardian that the historic situation has driven home the oft-quoted importance of every citizen making their voice heard.

“It made people in Georgia see how important it actually is to vote,” Aluko said. “If the whole world is looking at you and paying attention to you, suddenly, maybe your vote matters.”

Averages of major polls show both Democrats leading by about 3 points, with the Republican incumbents narrowly ahead in a handful of polls. The polls come with plenty of caveats due to potentially low voter turnout due to the pandemic and since a January runoff election can be difficult for pollsters to get accurate numbers.

The neck-and-neck races come on the heels of Biden’s surprise win in the historically conservative state. In November, the former vice president became the first Democrat to take the Peach State in nearly three decades.

Democrats have seldom won Georgia’s statewide runoff elections, but this has not been a typical race. A record-breaking 3 million voted early, and a substantial number of those ballots came from black voters and others in Democratic-leaning areas. Republicans were considered more likely to vote on Election Day.

If the races remain close, legal challenges are expected.

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