Alabama Senate race hurtles to a dramatic finish
Roy Moore is set to emerge from hiding at a rally with Steve Bannon, as a surprise Fox News poll shows Democrat Doug Jones up by double-digits.
By GABRIEL DEBENEDETTI 12/11/2017 02:06 PM EST
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — On the day before voters cast their votes in Alabama's roller-coaster Senate special election, Democrat Doug Jones is enlisting last-minute help from former President Barack Obama, while Republican Roy Moore is expected to emerge from hiding at a final-hour rally with Steve Bannon.
The anticipation surrounding the highest-profile special election in years grew with a surprise poll from Fox News showing Jones ahead by double-digits — defying a slew of other surveys that had Moore clinging to a narrow lead.
While Moore prepped for an evening rally with Bannon, the former White House chief strategist and right-wing provocateur, Jones’ campaign is circulated robocalls from Obama and former Vice President Joe Biden.
The flurry of 11th-hour activity was a fitting conclusion to a race that has captivated the country, with the possibility of Democrats picking off a coveted Senate seat in deep-red territory against a Republican accused of preying on teenagers as a man in his 30s. The contest has exposed some painful rifts in the Republican Party that have yet to heal during Donald Trump's tenure in the White House. But it has also raised questions about Democrats' ability to win over African-American voters without Obama on the ballot, especially in Southern states where tough voter ID laws already make such turnout operations difficult.
Speaking to reporters at Chris Z’s, a diner in Birmingham, on Monday, Jones dismissed the polling discrepancies and tried pivoting back to local matters by saying he cares for polls just as much as Nick Saban and Gus Malzahn, the coaches for the nationally-ranked University of Alabama and Auburn University football teams.
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https://www.politico.com/story/2017/12/11/alabama-senate-race-roy-moore-doug-jones-290420
