GOP nominee Roy Moore, who defeated incumbent GOP Sen. Luther Strange in the primary, faces off against Democrat Doug Jones. The seat was vacated by Sen. Jeff Sessions who became attorney general.
Polls open at 8 a.m. ET and close at 8 p.m. ET. That’s 7 a.m. local time and 7 p.m. local time. The first exit polls are expected later this afternoon. Polling in the race isn’t much of a predictor. It’s varied dramatically — as late as the eve of the election, one poll showed Moore up by 9 points, while another on the same day showed Jones up by 10. Higher turnout in the race would seem to benefit Jones, while lower turnout likely favors Moore. Alabama is a solidly Republican state, and the last time a Democrat won a Senate seat, it was 1992, and Richard Shelby, then a Democrat, later became a Republican. Should Moore win, the balance of the Senate will remain the same, with 52 Republicans and 48 Democrats. Should Jones win, the GOP majority will shrink to 51-49.
[contentcards url=”https://www.cbsnews.com/news/live-updates-alabama-senate-race-election-results-exit-polls-live-coverage-voting-today-live-stream/” target=”_blank”]