If Jon Ossoff, a Democrat, wins today’s special election in Georgia’s 6th congressional district—a seat Republicans have held since 1979—it won’t be because he’s young. It won’t be because he’s idealistic, camera-friendly, or Star Wars-savvy. Mostly, it will be because Ossoff is lucky enough to be the first Democrat to stand a real chance of starting to claw back the ground ceded to Republicans on Capitol Hill.

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