Alabama
election: Democrats defeat Roy Moore, dealing huge blow to Trump
Doug Jones
becomes first Democrat to win any statewide office in Alabama in decades after
Moore’s campaign for Senate marred by sexual assault claims
Roy Moore’s
stunning defeat reveals the limit of Trump-style politics
Doug Jones
victory speech: ‘This race has been about dignity’
Ben Jacobs
in Montgomery and David Smith in Birmingham, Alabama
Wednesday
13 December 2017 05.41 GMT First published on Wednesday 13 December 2017 03.30
GMT
Democrat
Doug Jones won a remarkable upset over controversial rival Roy Moore in the
diehard Republican state of Alabama on Tuesday, setting off a political
earthquake that shook Washington.
His victory
in a special election for a US Senate seat – by a margin of 49.9 to 48.4 with
100% of precincts reporting – is a major blow to Donald Trump and his efforts
to pass tax reform on Capitol Hill.
Jones was
able to become the first Democrat in a decade to win any statewide office in
Alabama by beating Moore, who had faced multiple allegations of sexual assault
during a campaign which exposed Republican party faultlines.
Moore, who
late on Tuesday was refusing to concede the race, had been favored in the deep
red state until two women came forward to claim that Moore assaulted them when
they were teenagers and a number of others said that the Alabama Republican had
romantically pursued them when they were underage. Moore has denied all the
allegations.
Many Republicans rushed to distance themselves
from Roy Moore in the aftermath of allegations.
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Many Republicans rushed to distance themselves
from Roy Moore in the aftermath of allegations. Photograph: Jim
Watson/AFP/Getty Images
Alabama has
long faced a profound racial divide which was reflected in the results.
According to an exit poll, Jones won 95% of the African-American vote but only
27% of the white vote in the Yellowhammer State. However, heavy
African-American turnout on Jones’s behalf overcame Moore’s margins in rural,
predominantly white parts of Alabama.
Jones also
made significant inroads among college educated whites. He won well-educated Madison
County by a margin of 57-40. A center of the aerospace industry, Trump won the
county by a margin of 55-38 in 2016.
‘More in
common than what would divide us’
Jones
emerged to a euphoric reception just before 10pm local time. “Folks, I gotta
tell you, I think that I have been waiting all my life and now I just don’t
know what the hell to say,” he said, beginning a 10-minute speech. “I have
always believed that the people of Alabama had more in common than what would
divide us.”
The
election had never been either about him or Moore, he insisted. “This entire
race has been about dignity and respect. This campaign has been about the rule
of law. This campaign has been about common courtesy and decency and making
sure everyone in this state, regardless of what zip code you live in, is going
to get a fair shake.”
His speech
was met with cheers and applause and chants of “USA! USA!”
Doug Jones waves to supporters after the
results were announced.
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Doug Jones waves to supporters after the
results were announced. Photograph: John Bazemore/AP
The
Democratic victory will reduce the Republican majority in the Senate to 51-49
once Jones takes his seat on Capitol Hill. This significantly reduces the margin
for error as Republicans attempt to push through a major corporate tax cut.
They
already have one defector in senator Bob Corker and Jones’s election means a
single additional Republican breaking ranks would sink the legislation.
Moore’s
defeat also marks a major political blow to Trump, who endorsed the Alabama
Republican and held a rally on his behalf just over the state line in
Pensacola, Florida. Although most national Republicans rushed to distance
themselves from Moore in the aftermath of the allegations, Trump reaffirmed his
support through tweets and public statements.
Shortly
after the results were called Tuesday, Trump tweeted his congratulations to
Jones:
Donald J.
Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
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!
5:08 AM -
Dec 13, 2017
50,555 50,555 Replies 14,145 14,145 Retweets 57,453 57,453 likes
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Moore’s
defeat is a significant blow to the efforts by Steve Bannon and the populist
Trump wing of the Republican party to undermine Senate majority leader Mitch
McConnell.
Bannon and
his allies have been planning a series of primary challenges against
establishment Republicans in 2018. Moore’s defeat significantly reduces
their leverage as the joint efforts of Bannon and his website Breitbart could
not elect their preferred candidate in a state that Donald Trump won in a
landslide in 2016.
Steven Law,
the head of the McConnell allied Senate Leadership Fund, came out with a
statement putting the blame squarely on Bannon moments after the race was
called. “This is a brutal reminder that candidate quality matters regardless of
where you are running,” Law said. “Not only did Steve Bannon cost us a critical
Senate seat in one of the most Republican states in the country, but he also
dragged the president of the United States into his fiasco.”
Cory Gardner, the head of the National Republican Senate
Committee which flatly refused to backed Moore, said: “Tonight’s results are
clear – the people of Alabama deemed Roy Moore unfit to serve in the US
Senate.”
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