GOP chief: Voters will be ‘judge and jury’ in Alabama Senate race

Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel said in a new interview that Alabama voters will have to be the “judge and jury” on whether Alabama GOP candidate Roy Moore is elected to the Senate amid allegations of sexual misconduct involving teenage girls.

McDaniel said during a radio interview with John Catsimatidis that the allegations against Moore are “concerning,” but that Alabama officials have maintained Moore can’t be replaced on the ballot.

“The allegations were obviously very concerning, concerning to the degree that we [the RNC] pulled our resources,” McDaniel said.

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“[But] Roy Moore cannot be replaced on the ballot,” she continued. “He is the candidate. The Alabama [Republican] Party has stood by that. Now the Alabama voters are going to have to be the judge and jury on this.”

McDaniel’s comments come days after RNC officials said they would continue to deny Moore financial support from the national Republican Party over the allegations, despite President Trump throwing his support behind the controversial Alabama candidate.

On Tuesday, Trump blasted Moore’s Democratic opponent Doug Jones while defending Moore, noting that the Republican has denied the allegations against him.

Multiple women have come forward alleging Moore pursued them when he was in his 30s and they were teenagers, with one woman saying Moore initiated a sexual encounter with her when she was 14.

“He denies it. He totally denies it,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “Roy Moore denies it — that’s all I can say.”