GOP Alabama senator says he didn’t vote for Roy Moore

Sen. Richard Shelby, Alabama’s GOP senator, confirmed Sunday that he had cast a write-in vote for Tuesday’s Senate special election in the state, instead of voting for embattled GOP hopeful Roy Moore. 

‘I couldn’t vote for Roy Moore. I didn’t vote for Roy Moore. But I wrote in a distinguished Republican name. And I think a lot of people could do that,’ Shelby said on CNN’s State of the Union. 

Shelby noted that while he’d rather see the Republican win, he hoped that victor would be a Republican write-in. 

Sen. Richard Shelby couldn’t stomach voting for Roy Moore – nor Democrat Doug Jones – so he confirmed that he cast a write-in ballot for U.S. Senate in Alabama 

CNN's Jake Tapper (left) interviewed Sen. Richard Shelby (right) on Sunday. Shelby has represented Alabama in the Senate for nearly 31 years, though won't cast a vote for the Republican on the ballot 

CNN’s Jake Tapper (left) interviewed Sen. Richard Shelby (right) on Sunday. Shelby has represented Alabama in the Senate for nearly 31 years, though won’t cast a vote for the Republican on the ballot 

Judge Roy Moore is being accused of preying on teenage girls, however has stayed in the Alabama Senate race. Voters head to the polls in this special election on Tuesday 

Judge Roy Moore is being accused of preying on teenage girls, however has stayed in the Alabama Senate race. Voters head to the polls in this special election on Tuesday 

When the accusations first came out against Moore – that he had preyed on teenage girls, displaying inappropriate behavior including sexual assault – Republicans had floated the idea of a write-in campaign, which included candidates like Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who had vacated the seat, and Sen. Luther Strange, who lost to Moore in the GOP primary.  

However, no such effort got off the ground in part because former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon decided to stand by Moore, eventually getting President Trump to give the Senate hopeful a full-scale endorsement too. 

Now Moore and Democratic hopeful Doug Jones are locked in a tight race, which should have been a cake walk for Moore in the deep red state. 

‘I don’t know what is going to happen,’ Shelby admitted on Sunday. ‘You know, as a Republican, I had to vote Republican. I wanted to vote Republican.’ 

‘I understand where the president’s coming from. I understand we would like to retain that seat in the U.S. Senate, but I tell you what,’ Shelby continued. ‘We call it a tipping point. And I think so many accusations, so many cuts, so many drip, drip, drip, drip when it got to the 14-year-old story … that was enough for me.’ 

Shelby was referring to the story of Leigh Corfman, first reported in the Washington Post, who said a 32-year-old Moore volunteered to watch after her at the courthouse as her mother stepped into a custody hearing. 

Later, he picked her up and took her to his house in the woods and upon arrival ‘took off her shirt and pants and removed his clothes. He touched her over her bra and underpants, she says, and guided her hand to touch him over his underwear,’ the Post wrote. 

Upon hearing about that, Shelby said he came to a decision: ‘I said, I can’t vote for Roy Moore.’ 

Shelby, who’s represented Alabama in the Senate for nearly 31 years, also said he believed the female accusers are credible. 

‘I think the women are believable. I have no reason not to believe them … they are credible, but I wasn’t there, I don’t know what happened,’ the senator said. ‘But there’s a lot of stories there. There’s a lot of smoke. Got to be fire somewhere.’ 

Dean Young, Moore’s chief political strategist who was speaking on behalf of the campaign on ABC’s This Week, argued the opposite, saying that he didn’t believe the accusers.   

Young argued that ‘the people of Alabama want to know why 30 days before an election people would just come out of the woodwork and say Judge Moore did this and Judge Moore did that.’ 

‘I’m not sure why they did it,’ he continued. ‘I don’t believe them and the people of Alabama don’t believe them.’ 

While Democrat Jones has held event after event, since the accusations have come out against Moore, the Senate hopeful has only held a handful of public events. 

He had nothing on his schedule over the weekend, though will hold a rally Monday night, alongside Bannon and Rep. Louie Gohmert, a Texas Republican. 

Young blew off the assertion that Moore was in hiding. 

‘Well, Judge Moore’s been out for 25 years across Alabama and he’s known by the people,’ the campaign adviser said. ‘He’s talked to the people of Alabama and they are with Judge Moore.’  

‘That’s why I believe if we get our vote out – and we will – Judge Moore will be the senator that will be going up to Washington on December 12 and helping Donald Trump with his agenda,’ Young said.   



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