Roy Moore win would 'harken us back to days of segregation': Alabama congresswoman

ByELLIE SMITH ABCNews logo
Tuesday, December 12, 2017

The only Democratic congresswoman from Alabama said voting for Republican Roy Moore "will only take us backwards."

"I really hope that the people of Alabama realize this election is about the soul of this nation and the soul of Alabama," Rep. Terri Sewell told "This Week" co-anchor Martha Raddatz on Sunday.

"We who have been proud Alabamians know that we have been trying to overcome our painful past, and this candidate will only take us backwards and harken us back to the days of segregation," Sewell said.

The congresswoman is campaigning for Democratic candidate Doug Jones for the special election Tuesday for U.S. Senate. Sewell is the only Democrat and the only African-American member of the Alabama congressional delegation.

Moore, 70, has been accused by eight women of actions ranging from inappropriate behavior to sexual assault when he was in his 30s and, in most of the cases, the women were in their teens. Moore has denied the allegations.

Sewell said many Republicans in Alabama are focused on winning the seat for their party and are ignoring the allegations against the GOP candidate.

"At the end of the day, they're putting party before people, party before principle," she told Raddatz.

Sewell added that she believes Alabama voters will "see through this" and vote for Jones.

"The people of Alabama deserve a senator whose character and integrity and veracity won't be in question day one in the United States Senate," she said. "When Roy Moore, if he should win, goes to Washington, we will always be questioning his character."

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