The Alabama special Senate election guaranteed one dramatic showdown between Republican Roy Moore, alleged pedophile, and Democrat Doug Jones, former prosecutor of child predators. Although some sketchy polls skewed people’s perceptions of what would go down tonight, this was largely presumed to be a close race where turnout would be everything in a deep red state.
In the end, Jones managed to defeat Moore and the horse he rode in on. The New York Times and CNN both called the race for Jones with 89% of the vote in. The results? Jones wins with 50% and Moore trails with 48.4%. As such, Jones will be the first Democratic senator to represent Alabama in over two decades.
The race was a significant one not only because Republicans were holding a 52-seat Senate majority (and every win is clearly a crucial one) but because President Trump has been incredibly vocal in his endorsement of Moore and denouncement of Jones. As such and especially because of the controversial stances and alleged actions of Moore, this special election was a litmus test of whether Republicans would follow suit on Trump endorsements during the 2018 midterm elections. And now, there’s an indication of how those might shake out.
Also of note — Moore banned the Washington Post from his election night shindig, which was surely some form of payback after the outlet broke the initial allegation of Moore having sexual contact with teens when he was in his 30s.
Over the weekend, a CBS poll indicated that a large majority of Alabama Republicans believed that the sexual assault allegations against Moore are false. A Tuesday exit poll further indicated that 54% of Alabama voters felt that the allegations had little to no impact on how they voted. Yet it seems that not nearly enough of them turned out to vote for Moore.
UPDATE – 11:10pm EST: President Trump has delivered a “congratulatory” tweet to Jones while stating “a win is a win,” and “the Republicans will have another shot at this seat in a very short period of time. It never ends!”
Congratulations to Doug Jones on a hard fought victory. The write-in votes played a very big factor, but a win is a win. The people of Alabama are great, and the Republicans will have another shot at this seat in a very short period of time. It never ends!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 13, 2017
Also, Jones has delivered a powerful victory speech while Moore is refusing to concede and demanding a recount.
(Via CNN, New York Times & ABC News)