What are the big takeaways from democrat Doug Jones' win over republican Roy Moore in Alabama's special election? Salon's Alyona Minkovski, Amanda Marcotte and Jeremy Binckes sat down for a roundtable discussion on "Salon Talks" to dissect the politi...
What are the big takeaways from democrat Doug Jones' win over republican Roy Moore in Alabama's special election?
Salon's Alyona Minkovski, Amanda Marcotte and Jeremy Binckes sat down for a roundtable discussion on "Salon Talks" to dissect the political implications of the Alabama race. "I think what we're seeing really happening here is that a lot of democrats are feeling themselves. They're mad about Trump's election, they're turning out in huge numbers," Marcotte said.
Political observers are already looking at 2018 midterms in light of this race and what this democratic victory spells for the mood of the country. "Looking forward, this does mean though that 2018 is in play for the Senate. This was a one-off, absolutely, the stars aligned, absolutely, but it's one seat that the democrats don't have to defend," Binckes said.
Republicans now have 51 seats to democrats' 49, throwing the strength of their Senate majority into limbo. Despite the protests of Senate democrats, however, Republican majority leader Mitch McConnell is expected to push through the GOP tax bill before Jones is sworn in.
To hear more about factors that swayed the Alabama results, such as black voter turnout, write-in votes and sexual misconduct allegations against Roy Moore, watch the full conversation.