Controversial former State Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore has won the runoff in the Republican primary of the Alabama special election to fill Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ Senate seat. Moore’s victory, which appears to be handy, comes as a blow to the Republican establishment, including Donald Trump, which backed incumbent Luther Strange who was appointed to temporarily fill Sessions’ empty seat earlier this year pending a special election. Moore will now move on to face, and surely defeat, Democrat Doug Jones, a former U.S. attorney, on December 12 in the general election.
Moore’s victory coincides with the polling that showed the evangelical conservative with a wide lead heading into the runoff. Moore, who made a name for himself refusing to abide by federal court rulings on his posting the Ten Commandments in the courthouse and his resistance to implementing same-sex marriage laws, likely signals a rocky road ahead for Republicans in Washington. Politely referred to as a firebrand, Moore could also be described as a loose canon well outside the American political mainstream. Moore harnessed Alabama’s anti-everything political vibe, which attracted the likes of Steve Bannon and Sarah Palin, who both showed up in the state along with the Breitbart nationalist crew. Bannon pushed Moore’s candidacy as part of a “midterm war” against the Republican establishment. Moore’s victory will likely buoy the hopes of the more extremist candidates eyeing incumbents up for reelection in November.
*This post has been updated with new results information as it became available.
