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| Alabama Senate race: Trump records message for Roy Moore | Alabama Senate race: Trump records message for Roy Moore |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| US President Donald Trump has recorded an audio message for a Republican Senate candidate accused of sexual misconduct, on the eve of the election. | US President Donald Trump has recorded an audio message for a Republican Senate candidate accused of sexual misconduct, on the eve of the election. |
| The president has thrown his political weight fully behind former Alabama judge Roy Moore, who is vying with Democrat Doug Jones for the seat. | The president has thrown his political weight fully behind former Alabama judge Roy Moore, who is vying with Democrat Doug Jones for the seat. |
| Mr Moore denies claims by several women that he made unwelcome sexual advances, mostly when they were teenagers. | Mr Moore denies claims by several women that he made unwelcome sexual advances, mostly when they were teenagers. |
| The race remained too close to call in opinion polls. | |
| Why is this vote important? | |
| It could alter the balance of power in the Senate ahead of next year's mid-term Congressional elections. | |
| If Mr Moore wins the seat, it will be a victory for Mr Trump and the Republicans, who currently hold just a two-seat Senate majority. | |
| While it is already difficult to pass legislation in the Senate, losing another seat would be a blow for Mr Trump, as approval must be reached by the majority of voting members. | |
| Tuesday's winner will take the seat held previously by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. | |
| What are the allegations against Moore? | |
| While endorsing Mr Moore, Mr Trump has pointed to the former Alabama supreme court judge's repeated denial of the allegations against him. | |
| One woman alleges Mr Moore molested her when she was 14. Another says he tried to rape her. | One woman alleges Mr Moore molested her when she was 14. Another says he tried to rape her. |
| At a rally on Monday night, Mr Moore reiterated his denials, again questioning why his accusers had kept quiet for 40 years while he held various political offices. | |
| Speaking alongside Mr Trump's former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, in front of a crowd which chanted the president's slogan "Drain the Swamp", Mr Moore drew heavily from the Bible. | Speaking alongside Mr Trump's former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, in front of a crowd which chanted the president's slogan "Drain the Swamp", Mr Moore drew heavily from the Bible. |
| "I want to make America great again with President Trump," he said. "I want America great, but I want America good and she can't be good until we go back to God." | |
| Mr Moore was joined at the rally by his wife Kayla who said that separate allegations last week that her husband was anti-Semitic were "fake news". | |
| "One of our attorneys is a Jew, we have very close friends who are Jewish," she said. | |
| Mr Moore's campaign rolled out an audio message earlier on Monday with a recording of Mr Trump telling voters his agenda would be "stopped cold" if Mr Moore lost. | |
| At a rally in Florida on Friday, Mr Trump proclaimed his support for the 70-year-old conservative Christian who served in the Vietnam War. | |
| Fitting end to unpredictable year | Fitting end to unpredictable year |
| Analysis by Anthony Zurcher, BBC News | Analysis by Anthony Zurcher, BBC News |
| Democrat Doug Jones is ahead by 10 points. No, Republican Roy Moore has a nine-point lead. | Democrat Doug Jones is ahead by 10 points. No, Republican Roy Moore has a nine-point lead. |
| The latest batch of Alabama opinion polls are having a difficult time contending with the idiosyncrasies of a low-turnout, mid-December special election, a scandal-plagued Republican candidate in a deeply conservative state and a Democratic base that, while small, may be intensely motivated. | The latest batch of Alabama opinion polls are having a difficult time contending with the idiosyncrasies of a low-turnout, mid-December special election, a scandal-plagued Republican candidate in a deeply conservative state and a Democratic base that, while small, may be intensely motivated. |
| With so many variables at play, it will be tough to draw conclusions about the results of this election - but that won't deter anyone. | With so many variables at play, it will be tough to draw conclusions about the results of this election - but that won't deter anyone. |
| A Jones win would not only be seen as a stern rebuke of President Trump, who has put his name on the line for Moore, it would make Democratic control of the US Senate in 2019 a much more realistic possibility. | A Jones win would not only be seen as a stern rebuke of President Trump, who has put his name on the line for Moore, it would make Democratic control of the US Senate in 2019 a much more realistic possibility. |
| If Mr Moore prevails, it'd be a prize for the anti-establishment Steve Bannon faction of the Republican Party and an indication that, when it comes to a seat in the US Senate, ideology matters most for some. | If Mr Moore prevails, it'd be a prize for the anti-establishment Steve Bannon faction of the Republican Party and an indication that, when it comes to a seat in the US Senate, ideology matters most for some. |
| Back when Mr Trump named Senator Jeff Sessions to be attorney general last November, no one imagined all eyes would now be on Alabama. It makes for a fitting end to an entirely unpredictable year, however. | Back when Mr Trump named Senator Jeff Sessions to be attorney general last November, no one imagined all eyes would now be on Alabama. It makes for a fitting end to an entirely unpredictable year, however. |
| Many other national Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, have distanced themselves from their party's candidate. | Many other national Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, have distanced themselves from their party's candidate. |
| Richard Shelby, Alabama's other senator, said on Sunday he could not endorse Mr Moore because he found his accusers "believable" and the state "deserves better". | |
| The Moore team is banking on voters in the Deep South's staunchly conservative heartland refusing to pick a Democrat. | |
| In Washington, a Democratic lawmaker has sent a letter to the Senate's sergeant at arms urging that Congress take steps to ensure the safety of teenagers working in the Senate page programme from Mr Moore's "predatory conduct". | |
| "I believe my fears are well founded," wrote Wisconsin Congresswoman Gwen Moore, citing the multiple allegations against Mr Moore. | |
| Mr Moore has kept a low profile in recent days but he said in an interview with The Voice of Alabama Politics on Sunday that he had "never molested anyone" and had been a victim of "ritual defamation". | |
| What about Moore's opponent? | |
| Mr Jones, a 63-year-old prosecutor, has spent the past week rallying African-Americans and held a series of rallies across the state on Sunday. | |
| On Monday in Birmingham, Mr Jones said the election was "one of the most significant in our state's history" and urged voters to "put our decency... before a political party". | |
| Mr Jones also accused his Republican opponent of hiding. | |
| Former President Barack Obama and former Vice-President Joe Biden have recorded robo-calls - telephone messages that can be played at rallies - for Mr Jones. | |
| "This one's serious," Mr Obama said in his call. "You can't sit it out." | |