On December 13th, 2017, in the midst of sexual assault allegations aimed at Republican candidate Roy Moore, the race for the Alabama senate ended with Doug Jones, the first Democrat to represent Alabama in 25 years, scoring a narrow victory.

The surprise victory occurs amidst multiple allegations of sexual assault against Moore. As of November, nine women have come forward with accusations that he had pursued them sexually or romantically when they were just of age–18–or younger, and he was in his thirties, committing sexual misconduct [1].

In the wake of these revelations, attitudes towards Moore in the Republican party rapidly cooled. However, the Republican National Committee restored its financial backing to Moore’s campaign after President Trump formally endorsed Moore’s campaign during early December. In looking at attitudes of the rest of the Republican Party, reactions were largely polarized, with some that defended Moore and some that called for his resignation from the campaign for the Alabama Senate [1].

Ultimately, 49.92% of the vote went to Jones, with Moore close behind with 48.38%, and the rest of the vote going to other candidates. By race, Jones took 30% of votes from whites and 96% from African Americans, with Moore taking 68% of the white vote and 4% of the African American vote. Breaking down the vote by party yields the final tally of 8% of Republican votes going to Jones and 91% to Moore, 98% of Democratic votes going to Jones and 2% to more, and finally 51% of Independent votes going to Jones and 43% to Moore [2].

Saamia Khan ‘18 explains, “I think Alabama voters made the right decision in not voting for an accused sex offender. Hopefully the Democrats’ victories will continue during the 2018 midterm election.” Views such as this exemplify both the impact a scandal can have on the career of a politician almost guaranteed a senatorial victory and the divide in Moore’s home state, where his lead in polls vanished immediately following the statements of his accusers, but started to creep back up shortly afterward.

In addition to the sexual assault accusations, many have been highly critical of Moore’s views regarding race and religion, including his statement that Muslims should not be allowed to serve in Congress and that negating all amendments to the Constitution that were passed after the 10th Amendment–including those freeing slaves and guaranteeing them equal rights, as well as ensuring women’s suffrage–would solve many problems [3].

However, supporters of Moore have argued that the sexual assault allegations were fabricated or unfounded, providing a basis for the reasoning behind their votes. For others, it has been a matter of supporting certain policies or views, or choosing between the lesser of two evils. For many conservatives, that means voting for Moore [4]. Likewise, for many voters, it was a matter of voting for Jones to keep Moore from winning–the case for many African Americans, as many did not feel encouraged by Jones’ policy agenda, but expressed distaste at the idea of Roy Moore representing Alabama [5].

Furthermore, Aadhavaarasan Raviarasan ‘20 adds, “ I think that Doug Jones’ victory over Roy Moore was the best possible result in the Alabama senate race due to the fact that Roy Moore was repeatedly revealed as a racist and was exposed for committing sexual assault on multiple occasions.” Perspectives such as these epitomize the critical stance many have taken on Moore’s other actions in the aftermath of the senatorial race at Alabama.

Ultimately, the election brings the Republican majority in the Senate down to 51 as compared to the Democratic Party’s 49–meaning that the Republican party now has a very small allowance for error when trying to push through legislation, especially providing an obstruction to the recent tax reforms the Trump administration is aiming to pass [6].

In summation, Moore’s defeat in a state that has not elected a Democrat to the Senate in twenty-five years marks a turning point in Alabama’s role in the federal government–one that leaves the state in uncertainty.

[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/16/us/roy-moore-alabama-coverage.html

[2] https://www.cbsnews.com/news/doug-jones-wins-alabama-senate-race-special-election-results-roy-moore-not-conceding-2017-12-13/

[3] http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-smith-roy-moore-racism-20171212-story.html

[4] http://thefederalist.com/2017/11/30/alabamians-vote-roy-moore/

[5]https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/12/13/many-black-voters-supported-doug-jones-to-keep-roy-moores-alabama-values-out-of-washington/?utm_term=.8807fbbef631

[6] https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/dec/12/roy-moore-loses-alabama-senate-race-doug-jones-wins