SAVANNAH, Ga. — The issue of whether football star Herschel Walker paid for a 2009 abortion barely came up during Georgia’s Senate debate Friday between him and Sen. Raphael G. Warnock, though Walker used the debate stage to once again deny the story.

“That is a lie,” Walker said when asked about the account.

The hourlong exchange hosted by Nexstar Media Group and held at the JW Marriott Savannah Plant Riverside District became heated at times. The candidates accused each other of being untrustworthy, with Warnock saying that Walker “has a problem with the truth.” At one point, Walker turned to Warnock and said: “Do not bear false witness, Senator.”

The debate was among the most-anticipated clashes of the midterms, with strategists from both parties saying the outcome of Georgia’s contest may determine whether Democrats or Republicans control the Senate for the next two years.

Polls show the race is even, revealing a different dynamic than a competitive gubernatorial race where Republican Gov. Brian Kemp has an edge.

Walker, a first-time candidate who set low expectations for himself ahead of the debate by questioning his own intelligence, avoided major gaffes during the debate.

In one of the sharpest exchanges of the evening, Warnock attacked Walker for several episodes from his past.

“I’ve never pretended to be a police officer,” said Warnock at one point, a reference to unsubstantiated claims by Walker that he has worked closely with the FBI and a local police department. “And I’ve never threatened a shootout with police.” His comment was a reference to an incident where a police report detailed Walker threatening a “shootout.”

Rather than verbally responding, Walker pulled out what appeared to be a sheriff’s badge out of his pocket to illustrate his closeness to law enforcement.

“You have a prop!” a moderator said. “You’re very well aware of the rules.”

“It’s not a prop,” Walker objected, “This is real.”

The two candidates referenced their biography, with both saying they’re from large Georgia families. Walker sought to sully one of Warnock’s strengths: Oratory skills honed as a senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church.

“He’s a neat talker,” Walker said at one point. Later, he said: “He’s a smooth-talking politician.” And then added: “He’s sweet-talking.”

The debate also came about a week after the mother of one of Walker’s children said the former football star paid for a 2009 abortion that she said he wanted her to have. The woman told The Washington Post that she had to repeatedly press Walker for funds for the procedure.

Walker, who has been running on a strict antiabortion platform, opposing the procedure without exceptions for rape, incest or to protect the life of the mother, has said the account is not true.

Warnock said that Walker’s position is “extreme” and puts too much power in the hands of the government. “He wants to arrogate to politicians more power than god has,” Warnock said.

Warnock, who supports abortion rights, also used a line he frequently employs on the stump that a patient’s room “is too narrow and small and cramped of a space for a woman, her doctor and the United States government.”

Walker appeared ready for it. “Did he not mention that there’s a baby in that room, as well?” Walker said, earning a round of applause from the audience.

Walker’s biggest stumble came when asked about the cost of insulin. One of Warnock’s key accomplishments in the Senate is pushing to cap the drug’s price for some Americans – which was part of the Inflation Reduction Act.

“I believe in reducing insulin, but at the same time, you’ve got to eat right,” Walker said. “I know many people on insulin, and unless you’re eating right, insulin is doing you no good.”

Warnock expressed disbelief that his opponent appeared to be calling out diabetics for their health condition. “I think we’re hearing from my opponent tonight that it’s their fault . . . [for the] prices of insulin.”

Throughout the debate, Warnock referenced various times he has worked with Republicans, name-checking Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., for initiatives they’ve pushed to help reduce maternal mortality.

Warnock pointed to profit-taking by large corporations when asked about inflation. “Who exploits a pandemic?” he asked.

Walker repeatedly sought to tie his opponent to President Joe Biden, saying Warnock and Biden are “cut from the same cloth.” “He and Joe Biden, they’re the same,” Walker said to applause from the studio audience.

Warnock tried repeatedly to rebut that charge. “I’ve stood up to the Biden administration,” Warnock said. But he dodged when asked whether Biden should run again, saying he has not thought about it.

Walker, when asked if former president Donald Trump should run again, offered a clear answer and support for the idea. “Yes, I would. President Trump is my friend,” Walker said. “I won’t leave my allies.”

Walker and Warnock both said they would accept the results of the Senate election, regardless of the results.

Walker, who has previously supported Trump’s false claims that there was widespread fraud during the 2020 presidential election, also said Biden won the election in 2020.

“President Biden won, and Senator Warnock won. That’s the reason I decided to run,” he said. An analysis by The Post found that more than 100 candidates for statewide office or Congress have repeated Trump’s lie about the election results.

On Friday morning, ahead of the debate, Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, echoed Walker’s message on the abortion story.

“Herschel Walker has denied those allegations,” Scott said at a rally in Savannah for Walker. “He’s had lots of struggles, like a lot of people do, like a lot of families do.”

“The path to the majority comes right here through Georgia,” Scott said.

Last week, the Daily Beast published an account of the mother of one of Walker’s children saying he paid for her 2009 abortion after she became pregnant while they were in a relationship. The Post has reviewed a receipt for the procedure, an ATM deposit slip that includes an image of a $700 check written by Walker days after the procedure and a “get well” card that he sent with the check. The Post has spoken with a person the woman confided in at the time, who corroborated her account.

Though Democrats have said they think the revelations could upend what has been a tight race, some supporters had said the senator shouldn’t bring it up onstage. “That speaks for itself. Walker is showing his true color,” Mattie England, a retired nurse, said at a rally for Warnock in Savannah.

“Rev. Warnock, in terms of the things that he needs to bring up today, I don’t necessarily know that Mr. Walker’s honesty is one of them,” said Donna Sanders, a student and caregiver from Savannah. “I think most of us voters see clearly, regardless of what’s plastered all over political commercials.”

Scott, the NRSC chair, also tried to move on from the abortion story and instead focus on how much of the Republican agenda is at stake in the race. He said Walker will help lower taxes, secure the border and ensure parental involvement with schools. “If you name all these issues, Warnock is on the wrong side,” Scott said.

Walker’s ads have focused on the issues that he said he would support in the Senate, including working to secure borders, reduce crime and fight inflation.

Other GOP leaders have also tried to deflect from the stories about Walker’s personal life. “I’m more concerned about Raphael G. Warnock’s future than I am about Herschel Walker’s past, I’ll tell you that,” Rep. Earl L. “Buddy” Carter, R-Ga., said.

Democrats and the Warnock campaign have aired ads criticizing Walker for presenting a false account of his education, not giving promised money to charities, violently threatening an ex-wife, overstating his work for veterans and inflating the size of his company.

Walker has acknowledged the onslaught of negative ads with a TV advertisement of his own. “I can take the hits,” Walker says in the spot as footage from a football game plays, “but it won’t change the facts.”

Walker’s team sounded pleased with his performance on the stage. “I have not been as proud to have Herschel Walker on my team since he played football for the University of Georgia,” said Rep. Earl L. “Buddy” Carter, R-Ga., said after the exchange.

On Sunday, the Atlanta Press Club is set to host another Senate debate. Warnock plans to attend, as does Chase Oliver, a Libertarian candidate in the race. Walker has not confirmed that he’ll be there, according to the press club’s website.

On Monday, Walker is set to participate in a televised town hall hosted by Fox News’s Sean Hannity in Acworth, Ga., north of Atlanta.

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