More Mr Bean than John Wayne: thumbs down for Roy Moore's horsemanship

Roy Moore on Sassy: ‘He’s sitting on the horse like he’d sit in a recliner.’ Photograph: Jonathan Bachman/Reuters

It seemed like a one-horse race – and then Roy Moore turned up. The would-be Alabama senator went to the polls on a horse named Sassy on Tuesday morning, and while Moore, accused of multiple counts of sexual misconduct, might have felt he was looking all John Wayne, he ended up looking more like Mr Bean.

This is hilarious, his form sucks & that horse was thinking about bucking him pic.twitter.com/NLWfm8QtlY

— Molly (@Molly_Kats) December 12, 2017

As he rode to the polls in Gallant, Alabama, Moore, who has managed to turn the vote for a safe Republican Senate seat into a nail-biter, seemed to be losing control of his steed. Horse Twitter (yes, that’s a thing) was harsh.

Yes, his stirrups are waaay too long. That's why his legs are jutting all out in front of him like that and is also is why he can't balance. He's sitting on the horse like he'd sit in a recliner.

— MonaLisa (@m0naIisa) December 12, 2017

The worst part of it all is how badly he has that bridle adjusted. I have the urge to drive to Alabama and fix it! ATTN ALABAMA HORSEMEN: SOMEONE PLEASE ADJUST THAT BRIDLE FOR COWBOY BOB! It's driving me nuts.

— MonaLisa (@m0naIisa) December 12, 2017

The stirrups were too long; his rein skills were lacking; he was pulling too hard on the bit; and, apparently, he “rides on his kidneys”.

Moore stands accused of many counts of sexual misconduct, including an allegation that he initiated a sexual encounter with a 14-year-old girl when he was 32. Moore denies the charges. He must be hoping that riding to the polls will give him an edge – it did when he was last up for election.

“I think it’s a good thing to do,” Moore told CNN in September, when he rode Sassy to the polls in his runoff election against senator Luther Strange. “I won the last time I rode a horse.”

But the judge has experience with equine accidents. A few years ago, Moore was thrown from a horse while riding on his farm near Gadsden in Etowah County, breaking several ribs. Reports don’t specify whether Sassy was involved.

But a Twitter account purporting to come from the horse’s mouth was unimpressed by its rider and his politics.

I was really hoping that no one saw me with these two. I knew I should’ve stayed in the stable. #alsen #alpolitics #ALSenateRace pic.twitter.com/A2RQOkFrmW

— Sassy The Horse (@horse_sassy) December 12, 2017