Alabama GOP Threatens Retaliation for Disloyalty to Moore

[Amica Nostra 4,803]

WASHINGTON — Republicans in Washington may be abandoning Roy Moore by the droves. But in Alabama, the GOP has Moore's back and is threatening retribution against defectors.

The chairwoman of the Alabama Republican Party warned she's ready to enforce strict rules on party purity in the state's Senate race, even if it means kicking GOP candidates off the ballot in future elections.

"It would be a serious error for any current elected GOP official or candidate to publicly endorse another party's candidate, an independent, a third party or a write in candidate in a general election as well,” Alabama GOP Chairwoman Terry Lathan told the Alabama Political Reporter. "I have heard of no GOP elected official or candidate that is even considering this option."

 

A write-in is one of the only ways Republican opponents could stop Moore at this point, since it's too late to change the ballots.

Lathan did not respond to requests for comment but the threat is being taken seriously in Alabama, since party rules — as Lathan pointedly noted — can be severe.

Alabama GOP bylaws give the party "the right to deny ballot access to a candidate for public office" to any elected official who "either publicly participated in the primary election of another political party or publicly supported a nominee of another political party."

The provision applies for six years, meaning Alabama Republican officeholders who run against Moore or support a challenger could theoretically be barred from running again on the Republican ticket until 2023 — a political death sentence in deep-red Alabama.

"As long as Roy Moore is our nominee, a Republican cannot wage a write-in campaign under Alabama Republican Party rules and be on the ballot as a Republican in the future," Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., told reporters when asked if he was considering a run himself.

Related: Desperate GOP Looks to Write-In Candidate to Beat Moore

But Alabama Republicans likely don’t need much arm-twisting anyway to stick with Moore through the December 12 election.

Even as their counterparts in Washington ramp up pressure on the Senate candidate following recent allegations of sexual misconduct, few if any prominent Republicans inside Alabama have split with Moore, exposing a major rift between the state and national parties.

Moore, who has denied all the allegations, was defiant Tuesday after Senate Majority Mitch McConnell called him "obviously not fit to be in the United States Senate."