Doug Jones speaks at a news conference Dec. 13 in Birmingham, Ala. | John Bazemore/AP Photo Alabama certifies Jones’ Senate victory

The state of Alabama on Thursday certified Democrat Doug Jones as the winner of this month’s special Senate election after a judge denied Republican Roy Moore’s effort to halt the process via a last-ditch lawsuit charging widespread voter fraud.

Jones won the election with 673,896 votes, or just under 50 percent of the total votes cast in the Dec. 12 special election for the seat vacated by Attorney General Jeff Sessions, according to official results released Thursday. Moore received 651,972 votes, or 48.3 percent. The remaining 22,852 voters wrote in other candidates.


Moore, who has refused to concede since the Dec. 12 vote, filed a last-minute lawsuit late Wednesday seeking to delay certification of Jones’ win and launch a fraud investigation into the election results. But the certification proceeded as planned on Thursday, with Secretary of State John Merrill, Gov. Kay Ivey and state Attorney General Steve Marshall — all Republicans — signing off on the proceedings. Shortly before the 1 p.m. Central Time event, a Montgomery County circuit court judge had denied Moore’s attempt to obtain a restraining order to stop the state’s action.

Moore did not concede to Jones nor congratulate him on his win on Thursday, instead issuing a defiant statement that reiterated his allegations of voter fraud and said he has "stood for the truth about God and the Constitution for the people of Alabama."

Morning Score newsletter Your guide to the permanent campaign — weekday mornings, in your inbox. Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

"Election fraud experts across the country have agreed that this was a fraudulent election," Moore said in the statement, though Merrill said his office has found no evidence to suggest any fraudulent votes were cast.

Moore's grievances appear more focused on the campaign. He cited, in the statement, "fraudulent and intimidating advertisements from an organization known as Highway 31, predominantly funded by the Democratic Senate Majority PAC."

The certification sets the stage for Jones to be sworn into the Senate next week following the protracted, high-profile special election. Moore, a judge and longtime conservative celebrity in Alabama, triumphed over appointed Sen. Luther Strange during a primary earlier this year and was widely expected to win the special election until he was accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women, when Moore was in his 30s and the women were as young as 14 years old.

Jones, meanwhile, ran a low-key campaign and avoided railing against President Donald Trump, who won Alabama with more than 60 percent of the vote in 2016. His ascension to the Senate will reduce Republicans’ majority from 52 seats to 51 seats, placing a new hurdle in front of the GOP’s legislative ambitions in 2018.

"I am looking forward to going to work for the people of Alabama in the new year," Jones said in a statement released to the media immediately after the vote was certified. "As I said on Election Night, our victory marks a new chapter for our state and the nation. I will be an independent voice and work to find common ground with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to get Washington back on track and fight to make our country a better place for all."

Jones' victory also dealt a blow to Trump, who vocally supported Moore even after many Republicans — including Alabama Sen. Richard Shelby — refused to vote for Moore or said he should leave the Senate race because of the allegations against him.

Merrill said on Thursday that a total of 1,348,720 votes were cast in the Alabama special election. In addition to votes cast for Jones and Moore, 1.7 percent of Alabamians chose to write in candidates.