Doug Jones Certified As Winner Of Alabama Special Election

Alabama Senator-elect Doug Jones, the first Democrat to represent the state in the Senate since 1997, has been certified as the winner of the Dec. 12 special election over Republican Roy Moore by over 21,000 votes, in spite of Moore’s last-minute “election complaint” he filed in state court this morning. That request was denied by Montgomery Circuit Court Judge Johnny Hardwick.

According to the Alabama Media Group, Moore is still refusing to concede. In a statement, Moore said he had “no regrets,” and called the election “fraudulent”:

Election fraud experts across the country have agreed that this was a fraudulent election. Even the Secretary of State himself was forced to stop fraudulent and intimidating advertisements from an organization known as Highway 31, predominantly funded by the Democratic Senate Majority PAC.

I’ve had to fight not only the Democrats but also the Republican Senate Leadership Fund and over $50 million in opposition spending from the Washington establishment.

I have stood for the truth about God and the Constitution for the people of Alabama.

I have no regrets. To God be the glory.

Moore is referring to Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill and his attempts to cook up a voter fraud investigation based on an innocuous comment about the national support for Jones made by an excited Jones supporter at his victory rally; the supporter turned out to be a registered voter in Alabama. But Merrill, who’s been a forceful defender of the state’s attempts to restrict voting rights, disputed Moore’s allegation that the election was fraudulent, saying that out of 118 complaints of voter fraud registered with his office, 85 investigated so far have been unfounded, including two separate allegations that “busloads” and “vanloads” of Black and Mexican voters were brought into the state to commit voter fraud.

“I don’t think there’s any doubt in anybody’s mind that has followed this election objectively that this election has been conducted with the utmost integrity, that it’s been safe, secure, it’s been credible,” Merrill said in a press conference after the results were certified. “The results have the kind of integrity and credibility that the people of Alabama expect and demand and that the people of the United States of America know has occurred in our state.”

“I am looking forward to going to work for the people of Alabama in the new year,” Jones said in a statement posted to Twitter. “As I said on election night, our victory marks a new chapter for our state and the nation. I will be an independent voice and work to find common ground with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to get Washington back on track and fight to make our country a better place for all.”

Splinter sent requests for comment to both campaigns; as of publication, neither has responded.