Roy Moore has filed a lawsuit to try to stop Alabama officials from certifying Democrat Doug Jones as the winner of the U.S. Senate race.
The court filing occurred just ahead of today's meeting of a state canvassing board to officially declare Jones the winner of the Dec. 12 special election. Jones defeated Moore by about 20,000 votes.
Moore's attorney wrote that he believes there were irregularities during the election and says there should be a fraud investigation and eventually a new election.
In a statement announcing the complaint yesterday, Moore said "This is not a Republican or Democrat issue, as election integrity should matter to everyone,"
Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill says he has no intention of delaying the canvassing board meeting. Merrill says "Doug Jones will be certified at 1 p.m. and he will be sworn in by Vice President Pence on the third of January,”
In the complaint, Moore's attorneys noted the higher than expected turnout in the race, particularly in Jefferson County, and said that Moore's numbers were suspiciously low in about 20 Jefferson County precincts.
Merrill says he hasn’t found any evidence of voter fraud thus far, but his office will investigate any complaint that Moore submits.
