PHOTO: Doug Jones (D- Birmingham) at a November rally in Fyffe, Alabama. (Tyler Pruett | Southern Torch)
By Tyler Pruett, Managing Editor
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Associated Press, CNN, and Fox News are calling the U.S. Senate Election for Democratic candidate Doug Jones (D - Birmingham).
With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Jones has 671,151 (49.9 percent) to Moore's 650,436 (48.4 percent); a difference of 20,715 votes (1.5 percent).
A few moments ago, Roy Moore Campaign Manager Rich Hobson said at his Montgomery Rally, "Some people are calling, but we're not calling it yet."
The mood changed from confident to somber late in the night when returns started shifting in Jones' favor. Approximately 200 reporters are present at Moore's election night event, with Washington Post reporters being kept out of the event after the paper broke the story on Moore's alleged sexual misconduct in November.
No other news outlets were kept out of the event.
Democratic voters turned out big for Jones in the state's urban areas, with Jones getting 121,169 votes in Jefferson County alone.
Write-ins also certainly played a factor, with 22,819 (1.7%) being reported in the state. But with 1.5 percent separating the two, Moore still would have come up short as of now.
Shortly after 10 pm, President Donald Trump tweeted a congratulations to Doug Jones:
Congratulations to Doug Jones on a hard fought victory. The write-in votes played a very big factor, but a win is a win. The people of Alabama are great, and the Republicans will have another shot at this seat in a very short period of time. It never ends!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 13, 2017
Shortly after, Hobson came out and said Moore would be addressing the media and supporters soon.
More updates as the night goes on.
