Tuesday, December 12, 2017
Democrat Doug Jones Defeats Republican Roy Moore In Alabama Senate Race
(I apologize in advance for the informality of this post. I was struck by Doug Jones's unprecedented victory in Alabama and felt compelled to comment.)
The actual election itself mirrored the nail-biting narrow margins of the presidential election; at 80% reported vote the polls declared the race too close to call. Most of the counties in Alabama that voted Democrat were concentrated around large metropolitan areas: Birmingham, Mobile, Montgomery. A majority of the Republican counties were centered in the northern part of Alabama, along the border with Florida. (I would suggest taking a look at CNN's county map if you're interested.)
Roy Moore looked good for the Senate until recently, when sexual assault allegations surfaced in light of congressional investigations. Moore's support from the national Republican party weened, even drawing criticism from incumbent Alabama senator Jeff Flake. According to The Daily, a New York Times podcast, Moore had garnered support from the Christian right and ended his career as Chief Justice on the Supreme Court of Alabama when he refused to remove the Ten Commandments from his office. (Sidenote: I recommend listening to the podcast from Tuesday, December 12. It's only 25 minutes long.) Thus, even in the midst of sexual assault allegations, Moore carried a baseline support from evangelicals and rural Alabama residents. Conversely, the Democratic candidate Doug Jones comes from far on the other end of the political spectrum, having prosecuted KKK members for bombing an African-American church and killing four girls during his career as an attorney.
The last notable time such a drastic political shift in senators was when Senator Scott Brown (GOP) replaced Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy's seat in 2010. Now that the election is over, what matters most, I believe, is what you guys think the election means for the Democrats in Congress, and what kind of impact this even will have in the grander political climate. Please feel free to update the story with your personal insight or discussion from other news sources.
Discussion Questions:
1. Who did you predict would win the election? Are you surprised by the results?
2. What do you think it means when states with deep-seated political views elect members of Congress from the opposing party?
3. What are your general thoughts on this special election?
Links Galore:
CNN
NPR
Fox News
The Daily from the NY Times (if you enjoy news podcasts, I strongly recommend this one)
Another NY Times article that is very thorough in its election data
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43 comments:
The election is very meaningful for upcoming politics. Firstly, it is an uplifting statement in the public's scorn of sexual misconduct and desire to not place immoral people in office. It makes a statement that those who abuse or harass have no place in politics. Additionally, with the upcoming vote on the tax bill another Democrat in the senate means that it is much more possible for the bill to not pass. There are now 49 Democrats and 51 Republicans in the senate which is a very narrow margin. This is a very exciting step for Democrats who seek a more moderate and less Republican-controlled Congress.
The NPR article says that in 25 years, this is the first Democratic senator selected from Alabama implying that the people chose a representative based off of moral values rather than political affiliation, a refreshing thought in this ever-polarized era. I also agree with Ella that the Democrats in Congress are probably elated by the news that a Democratic senator won. I am overall very happy with this election, not because a Democrat won, but because people are seeming to go beyond a political label and use their morals and values to make decisions.
It is surprising that Doug Jones won the election since Alabama is a deeply conservative state, but I do agree with Ella on her comment about the public realizing that it is immoral to have a person elected into office when they have had any sexual misconducts or any related events. Furthermore, I think that moral character has a major part in elections because it allows the public to determine if that individual’s actions would benefit or harm the community. In a poll about the moral strength of Jones and Moore, Jones received 59% whereas Moore received 57%. Even though this is only a 2% difference, it still shows that people see that Moore’s actions are negative . Today, Trump tweeted, “The people of Alabama will do the right thing. Doug Jones is Pro-Abortion, weak on Crime, Military and Illegal Immigration, Bad for Gun Owners and Veterans and against the WALL. Jones is a Pelosi/Schumer Puppet. Roy Moore will always vote with us. VOTE ROY MOORE!” This tweet indicates that the people of Alabama are well aware of Moore’s actions and clearly do not share the same childish views as Trump because Jones won. I think it’s important to recognize that even if people are in different political parties, individuals will most likely see character and morality as a major part of the election process.
Ok, this is actually very pessimistic of me, but I thought Roy Moore would win. I wasn't sure if America could pull their stuff together and make a morally right decision. I also read in a tweet that the voter turnout for African Americans was EXTREMELY high and was a huge factor in the win. Honestly, this is a step in the right direction, but it was only a 1.5% margin. I just don't seem to understand why anyone would want to vote for a pedophile but... Anyways.
Like Andrea mentioned, I too, also thought that Roy Moore was going to win the election, especially because President Trump endorsed him and he was running in a conservative state. I remember I was standing next to Zack when he told me that Doug Jones won the election, and we were both shocked. I am glad that the people in Alabama voted for Doug Jones because I think it can be perceived as both a statement against accepting a man accused of sexual misconduct and an event that illustrates that the polarization of people's alignments with their political parties fails in comparison to their moral values and principles.
I thought that Roy Moore would win the election because I remember reading articles on the news and on this blog that Trump backed Moore and I am surprised but glad that the Alabama citizens recognized that we could not have someone like Roy Moore who has sexually assaulted minors before in office. This shows that after stories of sexual assault Americans are starting to realize that having good morals is more important than political beliefs, and I think it is a step toward the right direction and they are calling for politicians to be better people and more accountable for their actions.
To be completely honest, I also believed that Moore would win. A democrat has not won an Alabama senate seat in about 25 years. I thought that the extremely republican state would choose to stick with its party. Although this is a huge win for democrats, I think it reflects more on a cultural shift occurring in our nation concerning sexual assault and harassment. The fact that in a state election, the voting population was able to go so strongly against their usual party because their party's candidate was accused of inappropriate behavior gives me hope going into the future.
I also thought Roy Moore would win because he was running in a state historically dominated by Republican beliefs. I also assumed that many Alabama voters were single issue voters on abortion, and wouldn't vote for Jones because he is openly pro life. While this is a victory for democrats and basic human decency, it is important to note that the majority of people in Alabama still align with conservative/republican beliefs; and as their representative, Doug Jones is obligated to accurately represent their beliefs if he is to stay in the Senate. Thus, Jones will be a moderate and conservative democrat.
I was extremely shocked when I saw that Jones won the election. I was prepared for Moore to win in a landslide, but was pleasantly surprised. In my opinion, it is great that people were able to overcome their partisanship and acknowledge that one who has been accused multiple times of sexual assault is not suitable for the Senate. I hope that this is a step in the right direction. To reply to what Andrea asked about why people would vote for a pedophile, they either don't think he is a pedophile and think it is just the 'fake news' lying to them, or they believe that anything would be better than a Democrat. But I agree it is crazy that people believe an alleged pedophile would be better than a moderate Democrat.
I also thought that Moore would win, given our country's recent trends in the past few years, but I am very glad he lost. While this loss is definitely a step in the right direction for America, I don't think it is something we should have been proud of in the first place; not voting a likely pedophile into office is something that should be common sense (he shouldn't have even been able to run, in my opinion), and the fact that Jones beat Moore by only 1.5% in a highly publicized race shows that we still have a lot of progress to make. I also find it sad, but not surprising, that Kalena's statistics on the moral strength of both candidates show Jones as only 2% higher than Moore. Although I am not sure how that is calculated, I think it is messed up that Jones, a Southerner who prosecuted two KKK members and was inspired by Martin Luther King Jr., is only 2% "more moral" than a likely pedophile/sexual abuser.
I was also surprised to see that Moore lost the election because many still backed him up despite the disturbing allegations, so it seemed like many were unconcerned about his actions. It’s reassuring that more people ultimately voted for Jones and that Moore’s actions did affect the outcome of the election. However, at the same time, the margin was extremely small and many still supported Moore who was involved in sexual assault. This was still an important win though, as it shows how the majority of the public disapproves of sexual misconduct and its perpetrators in politics.
I'm very surprised that Doug Jones won because it's a rarity that a democrat wins a senate seat in the state of Alabama. I honestly thought that Moore would win because Trump endorsed him, and it was looking like he would win until those allegations surfaced. It just goes to show how a politicians history can majorly affect their support from the public. If Moore had won, I would be very disgusted that people would want a senator with a history of sexual assault, and the fact that Trump would support someone like that is not a good look.
I figured that as time went on, Jones would get more and more support as people find out and really think about Moore's inappropriate relationships. That day seemed to be the turning point, and shows that some do care about the personality of the person they're electing.
This is an unprecedented victory for the Democratic party but frankly I think it's sad that we are all surprised that the people of Alabama chose, by a very narrow margin, a Democrat over an accused child molester. While this is a good sign that partisanship has not completely clouded our judgement as voters, it is still disappointing that over 48% of voters in this election would prefer to be represented by a man accused of one of the most offensive crimes over a man who prosecuted members of the Klan years after they bombed a church killing young children.
Also just a side note, Jeff Flake is not the incumbent senator from Alabama. The current Alabama Senate delegation is the incumbent Luther Strange, who was appointed to the senate after Jeff Sessions resigned to be Trump's Attorney General, and Richard Shelby who said he would not vote for Moore but wrote in another name as opposed to voting for Doug Jones. Jeff Flake is the out going senator from Arizona.
I was very surprised but overjoyed to hear that Doug Jones had won the election. With Republicans currently holding such immense power in the government, I figured Moore (despite the serious accusations made against him) would win the election. Doug's victory has given me hope in our government and our nation. Given the recent 2016 election, and Trump's victory despite the VARIOUS accusations made against him, I figured Moore would have the same outcome. I am stunned that Christians continue to support a pedophile, while I may be bias, I believe this whole election revealed the ugly reality behind rape culture; blaming the victim and justifying the criminals actions.
I was pleasantly surprised that Doug Jones won the Senate seat. I originally thought that Roy Moore, even after his sexual misconduct, would win. I am encouraged that a typically Republican voting state, in Alabama, was able to denounce their party ties in face of scandal. I believe that this election displayed that the American people will sacrifice their political loyalties in face of a moral dilemma.
I originally thought that Moore was going to win. He was a Republican candidate in a very Republican state, and even after his charges of sexual misconduct he still retained a decent level of supporters—even our president. I am relieved that Jones won, but the small margin is a point of concern. I was actually surprised that his religious voter base was not more opposed to his sexual misconduct, but apparently enough people were concerned to sway the vote. The fact that Alabama swung to a democratic senator proves the dynamic nature of American politics and reminds all of us that people will still hold candidates to their actions, no matter what partisan “securities” they have.
I'll bet that many people were surprised by the outcome because Alabama was a red state and it voted for a Democrat to become their Senator. What surprised me is how people took it so seriously, the allegations that is, that they did a complete 180 and choose the opposite candidate, even if they were strong conservatives. Guess this shows the power of allegations and accusations, even if they may be false or fake, it can tear down a person's reputation and public opinion against him. Whatever happened to "innocent until proven guilty," as it seems not to exist in today's time.
This is definitely a huge victory for Doug Jones and the Democrats, who not only just won a Senate seat in ALABAMA but also managed to keep child-predator Moore out of Congress. Doug Jones being a women's rights advocate definitely helped; sources show that women tended to vote for him much more than men did, and 98% of black women voted for Jones, a defining part of his victory. It's really sad how Trump is now saying that Moore never stood a chance, even though he backed Moore through almost the entire race.
The fact that Doug Jones won shows that Democrats can win in deeply red Republican states. Hopefully, Democrats will continue to work hard to get more people to vote, especially in minority communities and in urban areas. It is extremely helpful when the Republican candidate is terrible and even the Republicans aren't willing to vote for them. If Trump's approval ratings continue to be low, it is possible that Democrats can get more independents to vote against the Republican candidates to protest Trump.
It is very good to see that these perverted and disturbing allegations against Roy Moore were taken seriously by the Alabama voters and that they voted against him in the end. To be honest, I was never really concerned about the political aspect of it, as in whether a Republican or democrat was elected, but more on the respectability and competence that whoever won would have to have. Politicians involved in illegal and disturbing incidents such as Roy Moore was have no place in our Senate or any government position. This goes for Al Franken and other politicians from both sides of the isle who have been involved. As for the state of Alabama, I think that the switch to a democratic senator shows the increasing influence of their African American population, as shown by their high voter turnout in this election cycle. This might be an overshoot, but this could be an early sign of a geographic political switch in the South which could develop more in the oncoming years.
Not everyone is stupid, but most people are. We still have to consider, 48% of Alabama still voted for the Sexual pedophile over the democrat. This means there is a significant majority of people who think democrats are worse than pedophiles. What the heck! This is absolutely crazy. I don't see this as a win for the democrats just yet because there are still too many people who appose values based on principle rather than logic. I was surprised that Jones won, I actually expected more in Alabama would prefer a pedophile over a democrat. I think rather than trying to get democrats elected to congress, democrats should focus on educating everyone to lift the bar. People should never chose a pedophile over a democrat based on principle, proper education can fix that.
Going into the election I wasn't too sure about who would win but I was leaning towards Moore. With Alabama being such a conservative state along with Trump having been accused of acts similar to those of Roy Moore, I wouldn't have been surprised if Moore won. This win brings a lot of hope to the Democratic party and could create some momentum moving forward. With such Republican prominence in Congress, Jones' win could spark change. One thing that was tough to wrap my head around was what Tillman mentioned about about 48% still voting for Moore. Though the accusations against Moore aren't proven, those voters must have either not believed he was guilty or just completely disregarded the situation and voted for their own party.
I really was unsure of the outcome of this election, seeing as Alabama is considered to be a very conservative state. And since Alabama voted for Trump, and Trump endorsed Moore, I thought it very possible Alabama would still vote for the Republican. I believe this can be a great win for the Democrats seeing we now have more of an advantage when it comes to Congress, especially with this tax bill in progress currently. I do have to agree with Tilman though, that it's unfortunate that a good proportion of Alabama was still willing to vote for Moore, even if he didn't ultimately win. However, I'm not surprised since Trump is our president and he has multitudes of physical proof of horribly sexist remarks towards women. I do feel though that the Democrats are fighting hard and not giving up since Trump's win and we should continue to fight harder.
I was surprised that Alabama of all states would gain a democratic Senator instead of a Republican one. This is a complete turning point in the Senate as the Republican majority is starting to lose its grasp on the Senate, meaning Democrats will have more say in the Senate. Many people suspected that Moore would succeed the Senate race due to his background as a Republican. I believed that people would not learn from their mistake with Trump and would vote for Moore even though his history was very disgusting. However, the people of Alabama shocked me as they were able to get Doug Jones, a democrat in a Republican state, to win. I think this event is very important as people are starting to realize that electing people with suspicious backgrounds is not an acceptable action to commit. Americans are learning from electing Trump that stupidity is unacceptable in this current political climate. Action is needed to reform the government into one which is satisfactory for the American public, and Americans are starting to become more involved with politics.
I wanted Jones to win the election because Roy Moore was a known rapist, and shouldn't be in the Senate, so I was happy with the outcome of the special election. I was surprised that Alabama elected a democrat, because Alabama is a very republican state, but because of the choice of candidates, I predicted that Jones would win. I hoped that women would band together to vote for the candidate that hasn't sexually assaulted underage women, so I was happy with the results.
I was hoping Jones would come away with the win, however I was unsure of how Alabama would vote. I like to think that Alabama, a republican state, elected a democrat because of the sexual harassment allegations Moore is involved in. Alabama also voted for Trump, who endorsed Moore, which made me believe that Alabama would elect Moore despite his background with sexual assault.
I'm happily surprised by the outcome of the election. I had believed that Alabama was going to vote for Roy Moore, and favor partisan politics over Moore's character and set of morals. I think that this shows that the country, as divided as it is, still has a set of ideals that are more than just being a Republican or a Democrat. Jones' election shows backlash against the President's and the GOP's disregard of official's wrongdoings. Roy Moore was accused of disgusting acts, and the fact that the country didn't let him get away with them shows a step in the right direction, and gives me hope that we will start holding government officials, no matter how high up, to a higher moral standard. I'm glad to see a solid red state like Alabama elect a democrat to office, but I'm not sure how long this will last, and if the country is really swinging to a more liberal stance . I think Jones' election is a great thing to have happened, but we will just have to wait and see if there are any larger implications.
In all honesty, I would have believed that Moore would have won the election in Alabama due to the history of conservatives in that state. However, I was surprised by the outcome of the election as well as overwhelmed with joy that the Democrats have won another election for the Senate this year. They are really starting to make a come back after the election. I would have expected the outcome to be hands down victory for Republicans as I have said earlier. However, the winning of the Democrats throughout the counties in Alabama. Like as you said, the northern part of Alabama were Democrats, however, there was also a strip in the center of the map that passes through Selma which also voted democrat. I believe that the main reason that the Republicans did not win this election is due to the assault claims that were being held against Moore. They lowered the dependability of the Republican to the point where there were not many supporters who wanted to side with a man who has been accused multiple times of sexual assault. My feelings toward this election are strong happiness as I have also read that there was a large amount of African American voters who decided to vote this year. around 98% of the African Americans who voted chose Jones to be the new senator which shows how minorities can make a difference if they stand up for what they believe in. This is really a good step forward for Democrats to change the seats in the Senate.
I was extremely surprised at the results. It's very race to see a democrat win a senate seat in Alabama. Furthermore, with trumps endorsement I thought at that point Moore would win. However, the allegations made against him definitely impacted the outcome. If it weren't for the sexual assault allegations, I definitely could have seen Moore win the senate seat. His past history really came back to hurt him in this senate race.
I thought that Moore was going to win because the chances were slim that a democrat would win in a historically republican state. In addition, Moore also had the backing of Trump, so I thought that the people of Alabama would be more inclined to vote for Moore. However, I am very pleased with the outcome of the election and that people can overcome their strong political ties when found necessary. Having a pedophile in office is a disgusting thought to me and, though, it was a very close election, I think this it is a step in the right direction.
Like many, I was quite surprised Moore lost the election. Aside from the allegations in his name, party loyalty, as we have learnt, blinds a population into voting for a candidate of the same party despite charges against them. Considering how traditionally conservative of a state Alabama is, it speaks volumes that some Republicans voted for Doug Jones, the Democrat in this race. While this can be considered unfounded, I believe with key victories in heavily debated races like these, the Democrats can slowly find their footing in this administration and ultimately take back Congress and the White House after highlighting the shortcomings of certain officials and pieces of legislation in the government. Although, this can work both ways, with the example of Al Franken having to resign illustrating this the best.
To be honest, I was very surprised to find that Doug Jones had come up on top in this election. Alabama is a very Republican state, and because of this, I expected Moore to win the election. Even with the charges he faces and the negative press he has been receiving recently, I predicted that a great number of Alabama voters would vote for him simply because of the party he aligns with.
When a state like Alabama votes Democrat in the special elections, generally it means that either the Republican candidate was atrocious, or the Democratic candidate was exceptional. Roy Moore had too many negative qualities to win this race, and simply being a Republican wasn't enough to carry him to victory.
I hoped for Doug Jones to win, however I honestly thought Roy Moore was going to win. Alabama is known as a conservative state, and for a democrat to win seem unbelievable! We had no idea how Alabama was going to vote but to our pleasant surprise, Alabama voted Jones! This is an extremely important win for democrats. Moore has been accused of sexual assault a number of times, yet he had been backed up regardless of these horrible allegations. Jones' win shows how the public is beginning to realize to not accept a man for his immoral and inappropriate actions. Why would we want to elect someone who is accused of sexual misconduct; not only is sexual misconduct inappropriate, it's disturbing and unacceptable. We see a shift in the public's opinion since they aren't as reliant on political parties and are more focused on moral ideals and principles. They are beginning to realize what the right thing to do is by choosing the right person to represent them in office.
After hearing what Mr. Felder said in class, I believe that this is a very important election. It reflected the racial divide in the state and allowed all to see the polarization that is prevalent in our nation. It may come as a surprise to many, but its because of the rise of the minority who has been seeking change.
Although the candidate Roy Moore had many individual problems, as the students above have stated, I thought this Republican defeat in such a deeply conservative state could partly be attributed to the reverse effect of the presidential coattails phenomenon. The presidential coattails effect, which was mentioned in Chapter 12 of the textbook, is the tendency for the victorious candidate's party to win seats in Congress. The textbook also mentioned that, conversely, when a president's approval rating is low, they are actually more likely to lose seats in Congress.
These election results show how important a persons reputations and actions are in the voting decision. The fact that a Democrat was able to win a senate seat in a red southern state like Alabama is the evidence for the importance of reputation. Roy Moore was just accused of sexual assault and that still caused him to lose. He didn't even have to be proven guilty. I was very surprised by the results, my prediction was that Moore would only lose a percent of his voters, but still win the election by a decent amount. I do think it is interesting as to how much these allegations can effect your campaign.
Given that Trump could win the presidency despite more than 16 allegations of sexual assault and openly bragging about grabbing women's genitals, I expected Roy Moore to survive his accusations and become senator. However, because Moore dates and harassed UNDERAGE girls and thus was labeled a pedophile and child molester, Republican constituents finally decided to draw the line, albeit a shaky, tentative line. I do not think that the age of the victims should matter, though. Sexual harassment is intolerable. Period. It also seems ironic that many devout Christians were still willing to vote for a sexual predator, what with their pristine morals concerning sex. Although I am thankful that Jones won, I still deeply disillusioned that many of the hypocritical, close-minded, inhumane bigots who overturned the 2016 presidential election still have not learned their lesson: do not vote for horrible men.
I was surprised that a Democrat one in a very conservative and Republican state. It was interesting and amazing to see people start recognizing the candidate's actions and taking that into account when voting. This shows how important public image is in elections. We have learned that candidates try to create a good image to ensure support from voters. Despite their beliefs, many conservatives may have changed their vote due to Moore's actions. I think it is a good thing that people are starting to take both the policies and the personality of the candidate into account when voting, not just one or the other.
On one side I was very surprised when a democrat won the election in Alabama, which is a notoriously republican state. On the other hand I am not surprised at the same time because of the accusations against Moore played a seriously large role in the election. I think that when a state goes against its deep-seated political views to vote for a opposing member of Congress when they want a big change in what is going on in that state. It could also mean that they don't agree with the views or actions of their party candidate.
This was a very shocking election. I definitely wanted Doug Jones to win, but considering that Alabama is the most "red" state in the nation, I thought that there was almost no way that Roy Moore could loose despite the terrible allegations against him. I was very pleasantly surprised that Jones was able to win this race, which showed me that there are still good and morally-decent people in this country that will go against political expectations and show their disapproval towards those who are racist, criminal, and generally immoral. To address the political consequences of this election, this victory is huge for the Democrats and very detrimental for the Republicans in the short term, as it now will be even harder for the Republicans to get any type of majority in the Senate to get anything passed. In the long term, however, don't expect this election to signal some type of Democratic shift in Alabama. When it comes time for reelection, the Republicans will win the seat right back, as long as their candidate is not as bad as Roy Moore. Alabama is just too Republican-rooted to turn Democrat just because of this election. Right now, however, we should not let this unavoidable future overshadow the significance of this victory.
Just like everyone here, everyone in Alabama, and probably everyone else in the nation, I was quite surprised to see a Democrat win in Alabama, a state in the deep South. This is definitely a significant victory for the Democrats, winning a Senator seat in a red state. However, I would hesitate to claim that this is a sign of ideological progress for Alabama. Really, all that happened was enough people decided that they did not want a pedophile representing their state for the other candidate to win. Like Ben said, it is very likely that this Senator seat for Alabama would be taken back by a Republican more scrupulous than Roy Moore in the next election, but I would like to take the time to appreciate the fact that our country can still agree on certain things, for example, that pedophilia is bad.
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