Roy Moore still won't concede Alabama Senate race; Mickey Mouse got a few write-in votes
It's been 10 days and Republican Roy Moore has yet to concede in Alabama's special Senate race, even as election officials move toward certifying Democrat Doug Jones' victory in the days ahead.
As vote tallies from 100 percent of the state's precincts show Alabamians have clearly selected Jones, Moore has offered no indication that he plans to concede the race.
On Friday, all of Alabama's 67 counties were required to officially file their election results to the secretary of state's office. In a statement, Secretary of State John H. Merrill said his office plans to officially certify the election on Dec. 28.
Also Friday, some of the names left on thousands of write-in ballots began to emerge. Some names are surprising. Who knew SpongeBob SquarePants had a constituency?
Moore's campaign did not respond immediately to a request for comment about any plans to concede.
Since the Dec. 12 special election, Moore, a former chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court who faced a barrage of sexual misconduct allegations during the campaign, has remained defiant.
Nearly 22,800 Alabamians choose neither candidate and wrote in their choice, which, in turn, hurt Moore's candidacy.
In several counties, Mickey Mouse and SpongeBob SquarePants appeared on write-in ballots. Phil Robertson, star of the television series "Duck Dynasty," received votes in at least 10 counties. Another popular choice was simply the word "anybody."
_Los Angeles Times
