Democrats face apathy, history in scandal-ridden Senate fight
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Renegade Republican Roy Moore may be plagued by scandal, but scandal alone will not persuade the voters of 44th Place North to show up for Democrat Doug Jones.
In a state where Democrats are used to losing, malaise hangs over this quiet African-American neighborhood in suburban Birmingham, even three days before Alabama’s high-profile Senate contest. It is supposed to be a Democratic stronghold, yet the Jones campaign signs are hard to find.
“A lot of people don’t vote because they think their vote doesn’t count,” Ebonique Jiles, 27, said after promising a Jones volunteer she would support the Democrat in Tuesday’s election. “I’ll vote regardless of whether he wins or loses.”
Democrats fought Saturday to energize a coalition of African-Americans and moderate Republicans as Jones and his network of volunteers canvassed the state. Moore, by contrast, held no public events, a familiar strategy as he bets big that the state’s strong Republican leanings will carry him to the Senate despite his shortcomings.
During an appearance near the staging ground for Selma’s landmark “Bloody Sunday” civil rights march, Jones declared that Alabama has an opportunity to go “forward and not backward.”
“The other side is trying to divide us more than they bring people together,” he said.
He was later joined by New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, one of only two African-Americans in the Senate, who offered a warning to voters gathered at Alabama State University: “Bad people get elected when good people don’t vote.”
Moore got a big boost the night before in nearby Pensacola, Fla., where President Donald Trump encouraged voters to “get out and vote for Roy Moore.” Trump has also recorded a phone message on Moore’s behalf, said White House spokesman Raj Shah.
The White House support comes even as the 70-year-old Moore faces multiple accusations of sexual misconduct, including allegations that he molested two teenage girls and pursued romantic relationships with several others while in his 30s.