FILE - In this Oct. 17, 2017, file photo Steve Bannon, former strategist for President Donald Trump, speaks at a campaign rally for Arizona Senate candidate Kelli Ward in Scottsdale, Ariz. Ward is running against incumbent Republican Jeff Flake in next year's GOP primary. Some Republican Party leaders warn that conservative candidates with problematic track records like Danny Tarkanian in Nevada or Ward can’t win general election battles and will lead the GOP to lose seats in 2018.
FILE - In this Oct. 17, 2017, file photo Steve Bannon, former strategist for President Donald Trump, speaks at a campaign rally for Arizona Senate candidate Kelli Ward in Scottsdale, Ariz. Ward is running against incumbent Republican Jeff Flake in next year's GOP primary. Some Republican Party leaders warn that conservative candidates with problematic track records like Danny Tarkanian in Nevada or Ward can’t win general election battles and will lead the GOP to lose seats in 2018. Ross D. Franklin AP Photo
FILE - In this Oct. 17, 2017, file photo Steve Bannon, former strategist for President Donald Trump, speaks at a campaign rally for Arizona Senate candidate Kelli Ward in Scottsdale, Ariz. Ward is running against incumbent Republican Jeff Flake in next year's GOP primary. Some Republican Party leaders warn that conservative candidates with problematic track records like Danny Tarkanian in Nevada or Ward can’t win general election battles and will lead the GOP to lose seats in 2018. Ross D. Franklin AP Photo

Will voters listen as GOP tries to stop the next Roy Moore?

December 23, 2017 02:25 AM

UPDATED 1 MINUTE AGO

Republicans who hope that Roy Moore's loss in Alabama makes life harder for other insurgents may find that primary voters aren't on the same page.

In Arizona, Mississippi and Nevada, entrenched Republicans are wary of outsiders trying to claim their party's Senate nominations. They fear those candidates would be unelectable against Democrats. Like Moore, the insurgent candidates are backed by former White House adviser Steve Bannon.

Republicans connected to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have been blaming Bannon for the Alabama loss and hoping to dissuade donors from funding his other candidates.

But some of the party's primary voters have a deep distrust of McConnell and party leaders in general and may not listen.

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