As you already know, the Alabama election is finally over. After weeks of anticipation, Democrat Doug Jones defeated Republican Roy Moore in a maddeningly close race.

Typically, the result would have been easy to predict. Alabama has been a red state for decades. In fact, a Democrat had not won a Senate seat in Alabama for 25 years. However, this election was different.

Since Donald Trump was elected president, political discourse in the United States has been remarkably rancorous. Tensions are at levels that most of us have never seen.

Additionally, we are now in the midst of a sexual harassment firestorm. It seems that every other day, we hear stories of politicians, celebrities, media personalities, and other prominent individuals being accused of sexual harassment or assault. It’s not hard to see that this new societal trend cost Roy Moore the election.

After the election concluded, the left lavished praise on black female voters for showing up in higher-than-normal numbers to push Doug Jones over the top. Democratic politicians and left-wing news outlets lauded black women for turning out to vote, and rightly so. Without black women, Doug Jones would not have won the election.

However, this isn’t the whole story. There is another factor that contributed to Jones’ victory — one that the left-wing media doesn’t want to mention: Republican voters.

Let’s take a look at the numbers.

Breakdown of Previous Alabama Senatorial Elections

If we want to understand what really happened in the recent senatorial election, we must look at total voter turnout for previous races as well. Here is the number of votes each candidate received in last week’s race:

Doug Jones: 671,151

Roy Moore: 650,436

In 2010, Richard C. Shelby defeated William G. Barnes in his bid for reelection. Here is the breakdown:

Richard C. Shelby: 968,181

William G. Barnes 515,619

Lastly, here are the numbers for the 2008 race between Jeff Sessions and Vivian Figures:

Jeff Sessions: 1,303,435

Vivian Figures: 750,775

Do you see what happened now? There is an enormous difference between the number of Republicans voters who showed up for Sessions and Shelby and the amount that supported Roy Moore. The judge had significantly less support from Republicans than Sessions and Shelby – while Jones enjoyed what was, more or less, average support for a Democrat. Although the results shouldn’t be surprising, it’s important to understand the bigger picture.

Doug Jones Didn’t Win; Roy Moore Lost

The black vote was undoubtedly a significant factor in ensuring Jones’ victory over Moore. But there was another important aspect of Moore’s loss: allegations of sexual impropriety with minors.

From the moment the first accusations surfaced, the GOP establishment fled from Moore faster than Gloria Allred chasing an ambulance. Former Trump advisor Steve Bannon attempted to rally for the beleaguered judge, but his pleas fell on deaf ears.

Here’s the bottom line: nobody can prove the validity of the decades-old accusations of sexual assault against Moore, but it doesn’t matter. The number of women who came forward made it difficult for reasonable Republicans to dismiss the allegations. Nobody wants to be the one to say “Yeah, I voted for the guy who was accused of sexually assaulting underage girls,” even if it benefits them politically. Contrary to what the left wants us to believe, conservatives hate sexual assault against minors just as much as anyone else.

In the end, the GOP lost a crucial Senate seat, but as Liberty Nation’s Tim Donner wrote:

“But consider most of all the baggage Republicans have shed with Moore’s defeat.  There will not be the promised and immediate ethics investigation into a newly elected senator.  There will not be an opportunity for Democrats to smear the GOP as the party of pedophiles.  There will not be an opportunity for the bloodthirsty left to tie Moore and Trump together in a nice neat two-fer package.”

Moore’s loss is a short-term setback. Had he won the election, GOP lawmakers would have had an easier time pursuing their agenda, but the left would have been given a lethal political cudgel with which they would have battered every single Republican candidate, politician, and voter. It would have been a Pyrrhic victory allowing the left to apply yet another inaccurate label to the GOP for years. It’s already enough that they scream “racism,” “sexism,” and “homophobia,” any time a conservative sneezes. We don’t need to let them add “pedophile lover” to the list, do we?

Let’s not lament Moore’s loss. Instead, we must keep moving forward with our agenda. Conservatives should focus on pushing the GOP to pass meaningful legislation and implement sound policies. After all, that’s why we elected them.