Doug Jones calls on Roy Moore to concede: 'It's time to move on'
Thirty-six hours after his stunning victory in Alabama, Democratic Senator-elect Doug Jones says he can understand Roy Moore’s unwillingness to accept the election results. But Jones says it is time for his Republican opponent to concede the race.
“I understand the frustration a little bit,” Jones said in an interview with NBC’s “Today” show on Thursday. “But I’d say, look, it’s time to move on. I mean, every race is tough. It’s bitter sometimes. But this is one where the people of Alabama have spoken.”
Jones defeated Moore in Tuesday’s special election, a win that sent shockwaves throughout the GOP. But Moore, who was strongly backed by President Trump, is refusing to admit defeat.
On Wednesday night, the former judge released a fiery four-minute video statement saying the election was “tainted” by “outside groups who want to retain power and their corrupt ideology.” Moore, 70, saw his campaign derailed after a series of women accused him of misconduct when they were teenagers and he was in his 30s.
“We are indeed in a struggle to preserve our republic, our civilization and our religion, and to set free a suffering humanity,” Moore said. “And the battle rages on.”
Moore said his campaign is still waiting on “military and provisional ballots” and the certification of the election results, which can happen no earlier than Dec. 26. Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill said even with those ballots, it is “highly unlikely” that the results will change.
“We’ve looked at these numbers and we feel very confident in the outcome of this race,” Jones said. “I think he’d do well if he’d just go ahead, let’s get this behind us, so the people of Alabama can get someone in there and start working for them.”
Jones, the first Democrat in 25 years to hold a Senate seat in the deep red state, also said he’s open to working with Trump.
“If the president has things on his agenda that I think are good for the people of Alabama, then I’m absolutely going to work there with him,” he said.
At the White House, press secretary Sarah Sanders said that the administration believes Moore’s concession should have “already taken place.”
“The president has already called and congratulated Doug Jones and expressed his willingness to work with him,” Sanders said.
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