Republican U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore continues to defy calls for him to exit the race after allegations surfaced that he sexually abused teenage girls while in his 30s during the late 1970s.
The saga began last week when The Washington Post broke the story that four women claimed they knew Moore when they were teenagers and dated him when he was an assistant district attorney in Etowah County, Ala.
Leigh Corfman, one of the accusers, alleges that when she was 14 she met Moore while at a courthouse and the two dated. Corfman said Moore brought her to his house and kissed her and touched her sexually.
Days later, an explosive revelation came from Beverly Young Nelson, who said Moore sexually assaulted her in his car when she was 16. Nelson said he tried to pull up her shirt and force her to have oral sex with him. Moore denies all of the allegations.
Moore and others have criticized The Washington Post and the accusers for coming forward with the information just weeks before the Dec. 12 special election.
Republican Mitch McConnell reacted quickly, saying he believes the women and asking for Moore to step down. Even U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, whose vacated seat Moore is trying to secure, said he should step down. However, Moore’s supporters and the Republican Party in Alabama are standing behind him.
Alabama State University History and Political Science professor Dr. Derryn Moten predicts that Moore will not last longer and that Steve Bannon, one of Moore’s biggest backers, is calling the shots.
“It’s sheer madness,” Moten said in an interview. “These women have been able to describe details about his home and everything. Judge Moore is damaged, but the only reason why he is still in this race is because the Alabama Republican leadership has rallied around him.”
Republicans in Washington are continuing to find ways to take Moore off the ballot to keep the majority in the Senate. However, any solutions could prove to be fatal, making way for Democrat Doug Jones to win. One solution is having a write-in candidate for the party, but that could split the vote and lead to a win for Jones.
“If Judge Moore stays in the race and he’s elected, the Republican Party would have a scarlet letter on its forehead,” Moten said. “This would be the absolute worse thing, and Democrats will use this. Unfortunately, those of us who live in Alabama have been badly maligned by the national media, and I think that there people who think that some Alabama voters would even vote for Charles Manson.”