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Groton Daily Independent
Sunday, Dec. 10, 2017 ~ Vol. 25 - No. 154 ~ 16 of 37
Reps. Martha Roby, Mike Rogers and Gary Palmer, as well as state Treasurer Young Boozer and state House Speaker Mac McCutcheon.
State of ceholders who said they intended to vote for Moore often cited the need to keep the seat in Republican hands.
In addition to Merrill, others who plan to vote for Moore include Gov. Kay Ivey; Attorney General Steve Marshall; state Auditor Jim Zeigler; Agriculture Commissioner John McMillan; state Senate President Pro Tempore Del Marsh; and Public Service Commissioner Twinkle Andress Cavanaugh, who previously led the state GOP. Also voting for Moore are current state party head Terry Lathan and U.S. Reps. Mo Brooks of Huntsville and Robert Aderholt of Haleyville.
The state’s most in uential politician, Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby, has said he wrote in a promi- nent Republican on his absentee ballot.
“I wrote in a distinguished Republican. I did not vote for Judge Moore, but I voted Republican,” Shelby said. His decision has played prominently in Jones ads pointing out Republicans who are not voting for their party’s nominee.
CNN reported last month that U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne said he will vote Republican and that he does not cast write-in votes. In a statement to the AP, Byrne said it is up to voters to decide.
“Some serious allegations have been made and Judge Moore has vehemently denied them. Frankly, I don’t think the people of Alabama want me, any national politician, or the national news media telling them what to think or how to vote,” Byrne said in the statement. “The decision is ultimately up to the people of Alabama to evaluate the information they have before them and make an informed decision. We must respect the voters’ decision.”
Sen. Luther Strange, who lost to Moore in the Republican primary, did not respond to a request for com- ment from AP, but told The Washington Post recently that the election is up to voters.
“I’m staying out of it now. I think everybody knows how I feel about Judge Moore. We made our case and the voters made a different decision,” Strange told the newspaper in a video on its website.
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who resigned from the Senate to join the Trump administration, declined to say how he would vote. Moore and Jones are competing for his old job.
“There have been some ads that may have suggested I endorsed a candidate, that is not so,” Sessions said. “I believe that the people of Alabama will make their own decision.”
State party loyalty rules could prohibit a GOP politician, or someone who aspires to be one, from publicly backing Moore’s opponent. The rule says anyone who openly supports another party’s nominee over a Republican could be barred from running as a Republican in the future.
Ivey became governor earlier this year after Robert Bentley resigned amid a sex scandal involving a much younger female political aide. When reached by the AP, Bentley declined to say who he is voting for Tuesday.
Ivey said last month that she has no reason to disbelieve the women who have accused Moore and is bothered by their allegations. But Ivey, who plans to run for governor in 2018, said she will vote for Moore anyway for the sake of GOP power in Congress. Her of ce did not respond to a request for an updated comment.
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Associated Press writers Matthew Daly, Sadie Gurman and Donna Cassata in Washington contributed to this report.
Early praise for ‘The Last Jedi’ after elaborate premiere By RYAN PEARSON and NICOLE EVATT, Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) — There were cheers, gasps, droid photo opportunities, casino games and more than a few standing ovations at the jam-packed world premiere of “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” Saturday night in Los Angeles, which many are already praising online.
Rian Johnson, the writer and director of the eighth installment of the franchise, dedicated the night to