Doug Jones’ historic win in Alabama has Democrats buzzing about their improved chances of retaking the Senate and applying some of the same tactics to other key races in 2018.
Democrats pulled off a once-unthinkable feat Tuesday night, winning a Senate seat in the deep red South by keeping the race as local as possible while controversial Republican candidate Roy Moore garnered national attention daily.
The morning after the special election, Senate Democrats were eager to cast the victory in Alabama as a direct reaction to not just Moore — a former judge accused of molesting a 14-year-old and who yearned for a time he considered better for the country "even though we had slavery" — but to President Trump and the GOP agenda.
But there was more to Jones' success in Alabama. Democrats were careful, listening to local Democratic officials and operatives about what they needed and when. Put it all together and you get an Alabama Democrat elected to the Senate for the first time in more than 20 years.
“People are excited,” said Sen. Sherrod Brown, himself a vulnerable Democrat up for re-election in Ohio next year.
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01.22.2025