Cheers erupted at Katie Britt’s Montgomery election headquarters as she became the Alabama Republican candidate for Senate on Tuesday night.
“When we got in this race, nobody thought this was possible,” Britt said. The former chief of staff to retiring GOP Sen. Richard Shelby was behind early on the race. “Unless you were related to be in or in a very small circle, you didn’t think this could be done.”
Britt was favored to win in the runoff against Rep. Mo Brooks after receiving the most votes during the May primary.
“One thing is clear, and that is that Alabama has spoken. We want new blood, we want fresh blood,” she said. “We want someone who will fight for our Christian conservative values, who will fight for the freedom and liberty this nation was founded on and will fight for that American dream for the next generation and the next.”
Britt rattled off a lengthy list of thank yous, including for Shelby, the people of Alabama, the crowd at her headquarters and her family and friends. She also briefly thanked former President Trump for “helping wrap [the election] up in style.”
“People across Alabama miss his America First agenda,” Britt said of Trump who endorsed the Republican establishment candidate in the 11th hour. “We are going to go to the United States Senate to fight for it each and every day. “
Trump became a presence in the race after first endorsing Brooks, one of his staunchest allies in the House, and then rescinding that endorsement after the Brooks campaign began to struggle. Trump accused Brooks of going “woke” after Brooks told a crowd at a Trump rally to move on from the 2020 election. As Britt gained momentum, Trump endorsed the candidate he once said was “not in any way qualified” for the job.
The episode turned into a public brawl between the former President and Brooks, who promoted Trump’s 2020 election conspiracies. Trump further embarrassed Brooks by saying he had “been wanting it back ever since…but I cannot give it to him!”
Brooks in turn lashed out telling a AL.com reporter that the former President has “no loyalty to anyone or anything but himself.”
Outside the Vaughn Park Church east of downtown Montgomery, voters who spoke to CNN were split on the power of Trump’s endorsement.
For Elise and Will Bone, Trump’s support is what put them over the edge for Britt.
“She’s young and I like what she stands for,” Elise told CNN. When asked if she and her husband ever considered voting for Brooks, Will interjected. “I like what he said,” Will said. “But Trump ain’t supporting him.”
But not everyone voting for Britt was doing so because of Trump. Susannah Cleveland has been behind Britt since day one.
“She is relatable, she is a mom like I am, I know her personally and I think she’s a great person,” Cleveland said. “I don’t trust Mo; I think Katie will be the best.”
LeeAnn Duggar came to vote with her daughter. She was backing Brooks, because she says he’s more conservative than Britt. Duggar said her opinion of Brooks wasn’t changed after Trump rescinded his endorsement.
Source: www.cnn.com