Arlester McBride
Arlester "Mack" McBride was a 2017 special election write-in candidate who sought election to the U.S. Senate from Alabama. McBride ran in the general election on December 12, 2017.[1]
Elections
2017
Former U.S. attorney Doug Jones (D) defeated former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore (R) in the general election on December 12, 2017.[2] Jones topped Moore by 1.7 points, 50 percent to 48.3 percent.[3] It was the only congressional special election in 2017 to result in a flipped seat.
Moore did not concede the race and said he considered requesting a recount.[4]
Why was there no recount?
Under Alabama law, a recount is automatically ordered when a candidate wins by no more than 0.5 percent of all votes cast for the office. Jones led Moore by 1.5 percentage when the count was unofficial.
A recount could also be requested by the losing candidate in some races, but he must pay for the costs.[5] Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill estimated that the process would cost $1 to $1.5 million.[6] The relevant state statutes also suggested that candidates for the U.S. Congress cannot petition for recounts.[7]
Was there a delay in the certification of results because of voter fraud claims?
No. On December 27, 2017, Moore filed a complaint alleging potential voter fraud. His complaint stated the higher voter turnout in Jefferson County was anomalous and that out-of-state voters had participated in the election. Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill (R) said the following morning that Moore's complaint would not affect Jones' certification, which proceeded that afternoon.[8][9]
When was Jones sworn in?
The state certified the election results on December 28, 2017. Jones was sworn in on January 3, 2018, when the U.S. Senate returned from winter recess.[10][11]
What happened in the final weeks of the race?
In December 2017, Moore regained some support in public opinion polls—leading or tying Jones in six of the nine polls released that month—and from his own party, in the aftermath of sexual misconduct and assault allegations against him. President Donald Trump (R) endorsed Moore on December 4, 2017, and the Republican National Committee reinstated its fundraising agreement with him on the same day.[12] McConnell maintained, however, that Moore would face an ethics inquiry if he were seated in the Senate.[13] For more on the responses to the allegations, please see the timeline of reactions to the allegations.
By the end of November, Jones had outspent Moore on advertising in the general election. According to Advertising Analytics, Jones had aired more than 10,000 television spots and spent $5.6 million. Moore aired one-tenth that number of ads and spent about $800,000 on them.[14]
Jones also outraised Moore in individual contributions, $11.5 million to $5.2 million.[15] This was significantly more than any other Democratic Senate candidate in Alabama in the previous 10 years—the previous high in this time period was Vivian Davis Figures in 2008 with $293,000.[16]
Jones became the first Democrat to win a Senate seat in Alabama since Richard Shelby in 1992. Shelby later switched his party affiliation to Republican in 1994.
Recent news
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See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "New Statements of Candidacy-Arlester McBride," accessed September 26, 2017
- ↑ The New York Times, "Live Alabama Election Results: Roy Moore and Doug Jones Compete for Senate Seat," December 12, 2017
- ↑ The New York Times, "Alabama Election Results: Doug Jones Defeats Roy Moore in U.S. Senate Race," Decemer 12, 2017
- ↑ AL.com, "Roy Moore recount could cost $1 million, may not be allowed," updated March 6, 2019
- ↑ Code of Alabama, "Section 17-16-20," accessed December 12, 2017
- ↑ Fortune, "Roy Moore Won't Concede the Alabama Senate Race. But He Might Not Be Able to Afford a Recount," December 14, 2017
- ↑ Election Law Blog, "Breaking: Under Alabama Law, Roy Moore May Not Be Able to Request a Recount If The Margin is More than 0.5%," December 12, 2017
- ↑ CNN, "Roy Moore files complaint to block Alabama Senate result," December 28, 2017
- ↑ Associated Press, "Roy Moore files lawsuit to block Alabama Senate result," December 28, 2017
- ↑ AL.com, "Doug Jones picks Joe Biden to escort him for swearing-in ceremony," January 2, 2018
- ↑ CNN, "Alabama certifies Jones' win over Moore," December 28, 2017
- ↑ The Hill, "RNC reinstates support for Moore after Trump endorsement," December 4, 2017
- ↑ The Hill, "McConnell: 'No change of heart' on Roy Moore," December 5, 2017
- ↑ Politico, "Moore buried under TV ad barrage," November 27, 2017
- ↑ Vox, "Doug Jones got more money from Alabama voters than Roy Moore did," December 12, 2017
- ↑ FEC, "2008 House and Senate Campaign Finance for Alabama ," accessed December 12, 2017
