Conservative Judge Roy Moore wins in Republican Senate primary in Alabama despite Trump support for rival

By Julio Severo

Conservative Christian jurist Roy Moore won the Alabama Republican primary runoff for U.S. Senate on Tuesday, defeating an appointed incumbent backed by President Donald Trump.

In an upset likely to rock the GOP establishment, Moore clinched victory over Sen. Luther Strange to take the GOP nomination for the seat previously held by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Moore will face Democrat Doug Jones in a Dec. 12 special election.

Throughout the campaign, Moore argued the election was an opportunity to send a message to the “elite Washington establishment,” which spent an estimated $9 million trying to secure the nomination for Strange.

Moore was twice elected chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court and twice removed from those duties for his conservative Christian stances. In 2003, he was removed from office because he refused a federal judge’s order to remove a Ten Commandments monument from the state courthouse lobby. Last year, he was permanently suspended because he opposed gay “marriage.”

Moore’s victory will reverberate through the national Republican Party in the battle between the party’s populist and establishment wings.

Trump, who held a headline-generating rally in Alabama last week, supported Strange with a Tweet sent before voting began Tuesday morning in Alabama: “Luther Strange has been shooting up in the Alabama polls since my endorsement. Finish the job — vote for ‘Big Luther.’” Trump tweeted support for him on multiple occasions.

On Monday evening, Vice President Mike Pence spoke to several hundred Strange supporters in Birmingham, praising Strange.

Trump and Pence made a mistake by endorsing Moore’s rival. But evangelicals, who elected Trump, did not follow his mistake.

Moore, propelled by evangelical voters and their prayers, consolidated support from a number of anti-establishment forces.

“All of Washington is watching to see what Alabama does,” Moore said at a Monday night rally in south Alabama rally attended by Breitbart director Steve Bannon, Brexit leader Nigel Farage, and “Duck Dynasty” star Phil Robertson.

Bannon told the crowd that the race was an opportunity to send a message to the “Washington elites” who “think you’re a bunch of morons.”

Even though conservative voters are electing Republicans to defeat Democrats and their socialist policies, elected Republicans are not fulfilling the conservative promises of their campaigns. Conservative voters are so displeased that they are suing the Republican Party.

“Despite voters giving Republicans the majority in the House, the Senate and now control of the White House, almost every promise made to voters over the last seven years has been broken in the U.S. Senate,” said Tony Perkins, president of Family Research Council Action.

“Judge Moore was elected because he is a promise keeper who will stand up for our Constitution,” added Perkins.

Moore is a powerful hope because different of Republicans who break their conservative promises, he stands for conservative Christian values even when it means to lose his job. He does not compromise.

Even though Trump has been elected largely by evangelicals to “drain the swamp,” his decision to endorse Moore’s rival would help fill the swamp.

Yet, conservative evangelicals showed that they are watching and that they will keep supporting conservative Christians, regardless if Trump supports them or not.

Wanting or not, now Trump will have to support Moore, after the Christian judge’s massive victory helped by evangelical voters.

I asked my supporters in Brazil to pray for Moore, and God has graciously heard our prayers. He is very necessary in Washington, to represent a faithful conservative Christian testimony.

I am very glad to be a part of the list of prominent conservative evangelicals endorsing Moore.

Conservative Christian Judge Roy Moore faced powerful left-wingers, who attacked him and his conservative Christians, including me — and he won. He was opposed by Trump and Pence, and he won. With evangelicals supporting him and praying for him, he will see greater victories.

May God bless America. May God bless Moore. May God bless America through Moore. And may God grant Moore victory in the final election next December.

With information from the Associated Press and Family Research Council.

Portuguese version of this article: Juiz conservador Roy Moore vence na eleição primária republicana para o Senado no Alabama, apesar do apoio de Trump ao rival

Source: Last Days Watchman

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