IRONDALE, Ala. — Sen. Luther Strange spent a low key Sunday brunching with his wife at a popular local eatery in suburban Birhingham, a battleground where his supporters are plentiful and President Trump’s endorsement makes a difference in this closely watched special GOP primary runoff.
Strange, locked in a close race with Roy Moore, the former chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, mingled with prospective voters along with his wife while in the buffet line at the Irondale Cafe. He didn’t aggressively work the tables, leaving the voter turnout work to a vast campaign operation that was knocking on doors all weekend in a bid to capitalize on Trump’s visit to Huntsville on Friday and Vice President Mike Pence’s planned swing through Birmingham on Monday.
“Moore’s a good guy, but he’s already been thrown out of office twice for violating the Constitution, so that’s it,” said Giles Kilgor, an elderly voter from Irondale backing Strange, who, like others supporting the incumbent, said he expects Trump’s endorsement to have an impact.
Alabama Republicans head to the polls Tuesday to nominate a successor to Jeff Sessions, who resigned in January to become U.S. attorney general. The contest has attracted national attention as Moore, who has positioned himself against the GOP establishment in Washington, jumped out to a substantial lead in most public opinion polls and attracted the support of many of Trump’s natural allies, including former White House advisors Steve Bannon and Sebastian Gorka.
A Moore victory could unleash a wave of well funded challenges to Republican Senate incumbents in GOP primaries next year — among the reasons Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and his supporters have invested so heavily in this race to elect Strange. The winner of Tuesday’s runoff will be considered a heavy favorite in the December special general election against Democrat Doug Jones.
Moore also was low key on the second-to-last full day of the campaign before Election Day, a day dominated by church in the morning and (usually) football in the afternoon. He was speaking at various churches, but declined to open those events to reporters. Strange also attended church Sunday before stopping by Irondale Cafe, whose website said has been in operation since 1928.
Moore was removed from Alabama’s highest court after he declined to embrace and enforce federal court decision, most prominently the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage.
That record has fueled his support with an Alabama GOP electorate that is strongly opposed to the so-called Republican establishment in Washington. But in suburban Birmingham, Moore’s reputation is helping Strange, a courteous, soft-spoken Southerner who reminds voters of Sessions.
“He’s done a good job. I mean, none of them are perfect,” said Mary Manville, a senior from Leeds, Ala. She plans to vote for Strange, saying of her friends and neighbors who intend to join her in doing so: “They all liked Jeff Sessions.”
