Alabama certified [Results, pdf] Democrat Doug Jones’ special election win over Republican Roy Moore Thursday, rejecting Moore’s Wednesday bid to halt such certifications and proceed with an investigation into election fraud.

In a last ditch effort Wednesday night, Moore filed suit [complaint, pdf] in the Alabama State Circuit Court of Montgomery County [official website] asking for the Alabama Secretary of State John H. Merrill [official website] to hold off certifying the results of the December 12 election, and upon investigation, requested the issuance of an order for a new election to be held.

The complaint alleges that the reported results were contrary to polls conducted prior to the election, as well as exit polls. It points specifically to Jefferson County, where it notes there was “a large implausible statistical discrepancy,” including a suspiciously larger margin of turnout than expected.

Merrill noted Thursday morning that he would move ahead with the certification unless otherwise told to do otherwise, and Montgomery Circuit Judge Johnny Hardwick [official website] dismissed Moore’s complaint shortly before the vote was certified, citing a lack of jurisdiction.

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey [official website], Attorney General Steve Marshall [official website], and Merrill signed off on all 67 Alabama counties Thursday afternoon.

After an historic campaign, including allegations of sexual misconduct toward Moore, Jones’ historic December victory made him the first Alabama Democrat to win the Senate seat since 1992. The final count puts Doug Jones’ official margin of victory at 21,924 votes, with over 1.3 million votes cast [NY Times Report].