The Alabama run-off duel was a foregone conclusion. Republican Judge Roy Moore was forecasted to be a shoe-in over Democrat Luther Strange. Moore led in the polls by a crushing 10 percent. The results confirmed the polls. In Trump-speak, Moore won "bigly."

Similar results were expected in the Moore senatorial election against Democrat Doug Jones. The Judge was once again up double digits. Instead, the expectation was trumped by realization; Jones won with 670,000 votes to Moore's 650,000. The mighty Casey struck out. It was Senator Jones.

Why? I count three reasons.

Moore's real opponent was not Doug Jones, but 1) a bevy of seven women who alleged sexual misconduct; 2) Moore's inexcusably ineffective defense, and 3) the Republican Party. We'll examine each, beginning with a critique of the seven women.

LEIGH CORFMAN. She alleged that when she was 14, Moore made overt sexual advances to her, which she repulsed.

Moore's response. A weak and unconvincing denial, "It never happened."

He should have detailed how he ruled in a custody suit over her child. Corfman's mother said that she was an unfit mother, under psychiatric care, addicted to drugs and alcohol, and irresponsible.

Moore ruled in favor of the grandmother and Corfman lost the custody of her child for a time. She never forgave Moore for this. It was payback time.

BEVERLY NELSON. She claimed that Moore sexually assaulted her in 1977 when she was 16. As evidence of this close association, she offered an inscription in her high school yearbook.

Moore's response. "I never did what she said I did," was his feckless rebuttal. Weeks after Nelson cited the yearbook evidence she admitted to adding to the inscription making it by definition a forgery. Moreover, to this day, Nelson's attorney refuses to release the yearbook for forensic analysis to authenticate Moore's handwritten well wishes.

Moore should have sued Nelson for character defamation based on falsified evidence.

TINA JOHNSON. She accused Moore of groping her.

Moore's Response. No response. He should have noted that not only was there no corroboratory evidence but there were factual inconsistencies in her testimony.

GENA RICHARDSON. The claim is that she went on a date with Moore and he gave her a "forceful" kiss (Heaven help us).

Moore's Response. Again, no response. He should have noted that the allegation floated on air with no supporting evidence.

BECKY GRAY. Reportedly Moore asked her out several times. Gray complained to her manager, who supposedly said it was "not the first time he had a complaint about him [Moore] hanging out at the mall."

Moore's Response. For a third time, no response. He should have said that investigators have failed to substantiate the manager's alleged quote, or even if he existed. It's bogus.

DEBBIE GIBSON and GLORIA DEASON. Gibson went with Moore on several dates when she was 17. She said they never did anything more than kiss. She added that her mother approved of her going out with Moore.

Deason dated Moore occasionally when she was 18. However, the relationship never went beyond kissing.

Moore's Response. Moore should have emphasized that there was nothing legally or morally wrong with dating the girls. Both were over the age of consent, which is 16 in Alabama. While some might fret because of the age difference between Moore and the girls, such differences are not uncommon. There was a 20-year age gap between this writer's grandparents.

Loretta Lynn, a country music legend, wrote in her book, Coal Miner's Daughter, that she was 13 at the time of her marriage. Though some say, it was 15. In either case, that's pretty young. Nevertheless, as with my grandparents, Loretta Lynn, and many others, it worked out just fine.

Human sexual attraction follows its own mysterious rules. Sometimes there is a physical magnetism in spite of an age divide and sometimes because of it. It's called biology.

Too bad Moore did not squarely address dating 17- and 18-year-old women instead of tap dancing around the issue.

Moore had one more adversary, Republican Senator of Alabama Richard Shelby. He, like Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, and a handful of other RINOs---Republicans In Name Only---would rather have a Democrat as the Alabama Senator than Moore. They got their wish.

Sen. Shelby and others advised a write-in vote in place of a Moore vote. Write-ins totaled 23,000 Blue ballots lost for Moore. That was enough to swing the election from a conservative Republican to a radical Democrat.

Sincerely,

Bob Scroggins, New Milford, PA