Warnock's seat comes into focus amid battle over voting laws and filibuster rules

Freshman Sen. Raphael Warnock, whose surprise victory in Georgia helped give Democrats the narrowest of majorities, now finds himself squarely in the center of an intensifying battle over tightening election laws and protecting the Senate's filibuster -- a debate that could directly affect his own chances of keeping his seat next year.

Republicans in Georgia are moving quickly to pare back many of the rules that eased access for voters in the 2020 election, with GOP lawmakers in the state pushing to finalize new restrictions before week's end to ensure they take effect by next year's midterm elections. And in the Senate, Democrats are pushing ahead with a sweeping bill that would expand voting access across the country, a proposal that has the backing of 49 out of 50 members of the Democratic Caucus yet falls well short of the 60 needed to break a filibuster by Republicans -- who contend the proposal is an effort aimed squarely at keeping Congress in Democratic control and helping vulnerable lawmakers like Warnock.