BIRMINGHAM, ALA.—As Democrats celebrated a stunning Senate win in Alabama, Republicans picked through the wreckage Wednesday after a blow that showcased voter backlash to sexual misconduct allegations and the limits of U.S. President Donald Trump’s political influence.Doug Jones’s victory in a part of the Deep South that has not elected a Democratic senator since 1992 was a dramatic repudiation of his opponent, Roy Moore, a former state judge twice removed from office. Moore responded to allegations that he made sexual advances on teenagers when he was in his 30s by describing his campaign as a “spiritual battle” against a conspiracy of Republican and Democratic leaders in Washington.Defending his endorsement of Moore’s Republican primary opponent, Trump said Wednesday that he knew Moore would not win the special election.“The reason I originally endorsed Luther Strange (and his numbers went up mightily), is that I said Roy Moore will not be able to win the General Election. I was right! Roy worked hard but the deck was stacked against him!” Trump tweeted.But Moore will not go quietly.After the race was called by The Associated Press, Moore declined to concede defeat, saying he believed that the margin of victory could narrow enough to trigger an automatic recount. “Realize that when the vote is this close that it’s not over,” he said. “We also know that God is always in control.”The Alabama Republican Party said it would not support Moore’s push for a recount.Secretary of State John Merrill said after Moore spoke that even though the margin of victory stood at more than 1 per cent, an automatic recount could still be ordered if a review of write-in votes and military ballots narrowed the margin of victory to less than 0.5 per cent.Read more: Democrat Doug Jones ekes out win over Republican Roy MooreMan recalls lesbian daughter, who died by suicide, in rebuke of Roy Moore‘O ...
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