MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) - U.S. Sen. Doug Jones is outspending Republican challenger Tommy Tuberville in the home stretch of Alabama’s Senate race.
Jones is often considered the Senate’s most vulnerable Democrat in the Nov. 3 election as Republicans try to recapture the once reliably red state. But he has fielded a well-financed and aggressive campaign as he seeks to hold on to the Deep South seat, outraising Tuberville by a 3-1 margin in the final quarter and approaching Election day with a definitive cash advantage.
The incumbent Democrat raised $10 million between July 1 and the end of September, according to campaign finance reports filed Thursday with the Federal Election Commission. Jones spent $10.7 million and had nearly $8 million on hand for the closing weeks of the campaign.
Tuberville, the former head football coach at Auburn University, reported raising $3.3 million and spending $2.1 million. He finished the quarter with $1.7 million on hand for the final days of the campaign.
Jones has reported raising $26 million since the campaign began. Tuberville has raised $6.4 million.
In addition to what the campaigns are raising and spending, several outside groups are pumping money into Alabama television ads seeking to sway the race.
The conservative group Club for Growth has spent $1.6 million to oppose Jones.
In trying to recapture the seat for the GOP, Tuberville and Republicans pointed to some of Jones’ votes to argue his views were out of step with Alabama’s conservative voters. Tuberville said those included Jones’ vote to convict Trump in the Senate impeachment trial.
Trump won 62% of the vote in Alabama four years ago and Jones is likely to face the headwind of straight-ticket GOP voting during the 2020 presidential election.
Jones, a former U.S. attorney best known for prosecuting two Ku Klux Klansmen responsible for Birmingham’s infamous 1963 church bombing, positioned himself as a moderate. He emphasized health issues and COVID-19 response and relief in his re-election bid. Jones has also criticized Tuberville for leaving a series of coaching jobs and dubbed him “Coach Clueless” for his response on policy questions
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