Results let Baker off hook for donations

Alabama voters dealt a blow to Republicans’ hopes of keeping control of the U.S. Senate but gave Gov. Charlie Baker a reprieve by rejecting Judge Roy Moore and keeping him from becoming a major distraction in the governor’s 2018 campaign.

Doug Jones’ narrow victory in the Alabama Senate contest gives the Democratic party early momentum in the coming midterm elections and means Republicans now have just a 51-49 advantage in the U.S. Senate.

But Jones’ win was not a big loss for Republicans, either, because now they don’t have to decide what to do with the accused pedophile judge. Democrats had been expected to put heavy pressure on Republicans to expel Moore if he won, but that unpleasant option is now moot.

And in Massachusetts, Democratic candidates for governor have lost a powerful weapon to use against Baker.

The Swampscott Republican continues to operate a GOP fundraising committee that has raised millions for the state GOP and the Republican National Committee, which left him open to charges that he has helped indirectly funnel money to Moore’s campaign.

Baker has denounced Moore and said he was supporting Democrat Doug Jones, but he could have done more to distance himself from the Republican judge. The governor never condemned the national GOP for supporting Moore and giving the Alabama judge money.

But Moore’s loss means the issue will likely fade as Baker begins his campaign against his Democratic opponents.

Democrats will have trouble raising Moore as an issue without him being in the Senate, so overall the night was a win for Baker.

Moore’s defeat also means President Trump will lose a crucial extra vote in the Senate, and make it more difficult for him to pass his agenda, especially his tax reform plan.

But while Trump eventually endorsed Moore, the election did not appear to be a repudiation of the president.

More than half of voters in the exit polls said Trump was not a factor in their vote. So much for the anti-Trump factor. In fact, more voters said Trump’s support of Moore was a positive influence on their vote rather than a negative influence.

Half of voters said they believed sexual misconduct allegations against Moore were true, but a little over half said it had no effect.

AP PHOTOS GRAND ENTRANCES: Democratic candidate Doug Jones, above, casts his ballot yesterday in Mountain Brook, Ala. U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore rides a horse to the polls.