Democrat Doug Jones is sworn in to Senate

Republican majority narrows to 51-49

WASHINGTON – Democrat Doug Jones, who pulled off a political upset in the South in December, was sworn in Wednesday as Alabama’s newest senator, narrowing the Republican majority in the U.S. Senate to 51-49.

Former vice president Joe Biden, a longtime friend of Jones, accompanied the new lawmaker into the Senate chamber.

Biden campaigned for Jones in Alabama last year, and soon after Jones’ win, the senator-elect sent out an email raising money for Biden’s political action committee.

Jones defeated Republican Roy Moore in a special election last month — the first time in 25 years a Democrat won a Senate seat in the state. It was a contentious battle for the seat of former GOP Sen. Jeff Sessions, who left to become attorney general.

Alabama officials certified the election results last week.

Moore, however, has yet to concede, and has been raising money to challenge the results. A judge struck down Moore’s request last week for a temporary restraining order to stop the certification of the results. Jones beat Moore by about 20,000 votes, out of about 1.3 million ballots cast.

Jones has said it’s time to move on. “Alabama has spoken,” Jones said on CNN’s State of the Union soon after he won the race. “It was a close election. There’s no question about that. … But now it’s time to heal.”

In the brief ceremony Wednesday, Jones, who carried a family Bible, walked to the front of the Senate chamber with Biden to be sworn in and take the oath of office.

The new senator was then greeted by colleagues, including Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, one of only a handful of Republicans in the chamber.

Jones also chatted with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. McConnell had called for Moore to bow out of the race after allegations he had improper sexual contact with teenagers when he was in his 30s.

In one of his first moves, Jones named his leadership team Tuesday — all of them Alabama natives.

Dana Gresham, a Birmingham native and former assistant secretary for governmental affairs at the Department of Transportation, will serve as his chief of staff. That announcement earned praise from some civil rights groups, as Gresham becomes the only African-American chief of staff in a Senate Democratic office.

Jones faces some challenges in the Republican-controlled Senate. He is one of only two Democrats in Alabama’s congressional delegation. Rep. Terri Sewell, who campaigned with Jones across the state, is the other.

Jones comes from a red state and will have to not only appease Democrats who helped put him in office, but appeal to conservatives who supported Moore or didn’t vote for either of them.

In one of his first moves, Jones named his leadership team Tuesday – all of them Alabama natives.

AP Sen. Doug Jones, D-Ala., takes the oath of office during a mock swearing-in Wednesday.