Bible-quoting conservative firebrand Roy Moore handily defeated appointed Sen. Luther Strange in the runoff for the GOP nomination to complete the term of former Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions. The result guarantees turnover in Senate Agriculture Committee membership to replace Strange, a supporter of additional cotton subsidies, following the Dec. 12 general election.
“Because of you, tonight, the establishment has been DEFEATED in Alabama! THANK YOU!” tweeted Moore, former chief justice of the state’s Supreme Court. He soon added, “Best grassroots army of supporters around!” Moore campaigned for “lower taxes, smaller government, and less spending” along with “rescinding unfair ‘free trade’ agreements.” His platform said, “I oppose abortion, same-sex marriage, civil unions, and all other threats to the traditional family order.”
Although the Agriculture Committee could be drafting a farm bill in December, a farm lobbyist said the departure of Strange, a committee member for a few months, would have little impact on the shape of the legislation. “Certainly the Southerners will push for another Southerner. Although they know if they really want something done, they’ll just go to [House Agriculture chairman Michael] Conaway anyway.” Conaway is from Texas, the No. 1 cotton and cattle state, and a proponent of new federal support for cotton.
It’s an open question what committee assignments Moore will get if he wins in December. One farm group official said Moore was not as likely as Strange to see eye-to-eye with Senate Agriculture chairman Pat Roberts, who wants a strong crop insurance program and few changes to the 2014 farm law.
President Trump, hugely popular in Alabama, endorsed Strange in a race in which the senator, also backed by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, was painted as the establishment figure and Moore was considered the populist outsider. Unofficial results showed Moore steamrolling through rural Alabama and winning in Mobile and Montgomery. Strange won in the urbanized counties that are home to Birmingham and Huntsville in the northern half of the state.
Moore will face former U.S. attorney Doug Jones, the Democratic nominee, in the general election. Republicans are the dominant party in the state, so Moore starts at an advantage. Still, Democrats believe they have a chance against a hard-right conservative.