Alabama senate election: Roy Moore says 'immorality sweeps our land' and refuses to concede defeat

'Abortion, sodomy, and materialism have taken the place of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,' says beaten candidate in fire-and-brimstone address

A day after losing the Alabama senate race to Democrat Doug Jones, Roy Moore has issued a stark new statement refusing to concede the election.

In a message issued by the campaign Wednesday evening, Moore said his campaign is still waiting for the official vote count from Alabama officials.

“In this race, we have not received the final count to include military and provisional ballots,” the candidate said. “This has been a very close race and we are awaiting certification by the Secretary of State.”

Moore's statement put the stakes of the election in dire terms, hitting on many of the fire-and-brimstone themes that attracted conservative and evangelical voters to his camp.

“We are indeed in a struggle to preserve our republic, our civilisation, and our religion and to set free a suffering humanity,” Moore proclaimed. “Today we no longer recognise the universal truth that God is the author of our life and liberty. Abortion, sodomy, and materialism have taken the place of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

On Tuesday, Alabama voters elected Jones with 50 percent of the vote to Moore's 48 percent in a special election to fill the Senate seat vacated by Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

The margin between the final votes was larger than the required .5 percent for a recount in Alabama. Moore was widely expected to win the race - a Democrat hasn't held an Alabama senate seat in 25 years - until allegations of sexual misconduct emerged in reports from The Washington Post.

“We have stopped prayer in our schools,” Moore said in his statement.

“We have killed over 60 million of our unborn children. We have redefined marriage and destroyed the basis of family, which is the building block of our Country. Our borders are not secure. Our economy is faltering under an enormous national debt. We have a huge drug problem. We have even begun to recognise the right of a man to claim to be a woman, and vice versa. We have allowed Judges and justices to rule over our Constitution , and we have become slaves to their tyranny. Immorality sweeps over our land.”

The Washington Post