Roy Moore today announced he is resigning from his position as the Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court to run for the United States Senate.

"I'll stand for the rights and liberties of the people," Moore announced to cheering supporters and to reporters gathered at the State Capitol.

"My position has always been God first, family then country," Moore said. "I share the vision of President Donald Trump to make America great again," Moore said.

He later added, "Before we can make America great again, we've got to make America good again."

Moore said a key to making that happen is making sure the federal government stays within constitutional bounds.

"We've got to understand that getting back to the Constitution, getting back to its restraints, are what we need in this country to make it great again."

Moore said he has submitted his papers to resign from the state Supreme Court, a position he was suspended from for the remainder of his term.

Gov. Kay Ivey appointed Lyn Stuart chief justice. Stuart had served as acting chief justice since Moore's suspension. Ivey will now be able to appoint a new associate justice to give Alabama's highest court its full nine members.

Justice Tom Parker said today he will seek the chief justice seat in the 2018 primary election.

"Alabama is a conservative state. We revere the Constitution and the Rule of Law. And I believe our courts are the battleground for our God-given rights as free people," Parker said. "Please pray with me as I take this step, and thank you for standing with me as I continue to stand for the God-given principles that remain the foundation of the freedoms we cherish as Alabamians."

In the upcoming senate race, Sen. Luther Strange, the former Alabama attorney general, state Rep. Ed Henry, R-Hartselle, and Dr. Randy Brinson, president of the Christian Coalition of Alabama have announced they are running.

Others have said they are considering entering the Republican primary. Among them are Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh, Sens. Slade Blackwell and Trip Pittman and former state Rep. Perry Hooper Jr.

The deadline for candidates to qualify is May 17. The party primaries are scheduled for Aug. 15. A runoff, if needed, will be Sept. 26, 2017. The general election is Dec. 12.

At a press conference last week, Moore said he would reveal whether he would run for the Senate seat held by Strange, who was appointed by former Gov. Robert Bentley to replace Jeff Sessions.

Moore was among about a dozen candidates interviewed in December by Bentley as possible replacements for Sessions. "I'd be honored to accept an appointment to the U.S. Senate if it was offered," Moore said at the time.

Also last week, a special Alabama Supreme Court upheld the decision suspending Moore from his position for the remainder of his term. The Court of the Judiciary found that Moore violated judicial ethics by telling probate judges in a January 2016 administrative order that they still had a duty to uphold Alabama's laws against gay marriage. The U.S. Supreme Court had legalized gay marriage in June 2015.

Moore called the prosecution "politically" motivated.

"I have done my duty under the laws of this state to stand for the undeniable truth that God ordained marriage as the union of one man and one woman," Moore said then.

Moore revisited the gay marriage issue during his remarks today. He said judges and justices are ignoring the Constitution.

"I know and I think you do, too, that the foundations of the fabric of our country are being shaken tremendously," Moore said. "Our families are being crippled by divorce and abortion.

"Our sacred institution of marriage has been destroyed by the Supreme Court. Our rights and liberties are in jeopardy."

Moore defended the actions that led to his suspension.

"What I did, I did for the people of Alabama," Moore said. "I stood up for the Constitution. I stood up for God. The great majority of the people of this state believe in God."

Moore denounced federal government involvement in public education.

"When the federal government starts usurping the powers of the state it's the right and the duty of its representatives to stand against that," Moore said after he was asked about Common Core curriculum standards used in Alabama and many states. "Education is not in the Constitution. It has never been in the Constitution."

Cal Zastrow, who lives in Michigan and previously lived in Hoover, came to Moore's announcement with two posters, one supporting a Moore run for the Senate, another supporting a run for governor.

"I don't know what he's going to say, but I'm ready," Zastrow said just before the announcement.

John McCrummen, pastor of Open Door Baptist Church in Enterprise, was at the Capitol today. McCrummen said he had known Moore for about 15 years and that Moore had spoken at his church.

McCrummen said he believes Moore can make a difference as a senator.

"He's not just going along to get along," McCrummen said. "He's proven that. He's paid the price. He knows what it's like to stand alone. So I don't think he has any fear of anybody but God himself."

Chu Green of Mobile said she supports Moore because she believes in high morals and the Constitution. Green said she is originally from Vietnam but has been in the United States for 44 years and is a citizen.

"I believe he will be a good senator and I hope he gets elected," said Green, who said she would campaign for Moore and encourage everyone she knows to vote for him.

Moore, 70, was barred by age from seeking another term on the state Supreme Court.

The Court of the Judiciary removed Moore from the chief justice's office in 2003 for refusing to follow a federal judge's order to remove a Ten Commandments monument Moore had placed in the state judicial building.

Voters returned Moore to the chief justice's office in 2012. His term was to end in 2019.

Moore lost races in the Republican primary for governor in 2006 and 2010.

AL.com reporter Kent Faulk contributed to this report.