Alabamians have just a few months to vet a slew of candidates before the May 19 primaries. It shows a healthy republic when there are more than a few people willing to enter the fray for public office, yet how engaged will voters really be, particularly in the race for Alabama governor?
U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) has already been anointed to win based on fundraising, name recognition, and extensive legislative record. Tuberville is also a showman who learned from his coaching days to capture the spotlight and use it to his advantage.
Conventional wisdom says that unless Tuberville is disqualified from the ballot or we get a last-minute surprise, he will sail through to the November election, trouncing anyone who makes it out of the primary.
Two other Republican candidates are running for governor: Ken McFeeters – co-founder of PAC Insurance, former Republican House District 6 candidate, andpast president of the Mid-Alabama Republican Club – and “Alabama” Will Santivasci.
McFeeters is hoping to upset Tuberville’s momentum by challenging the latter’s residency to disqualify him from the ballot:
Ken McFeeters, an insurance agent from Pelham, said he believes Tuberville lives at a multi-million dollar beach home in Santa Rosa Beach, Fla., and not a smaller house in Auburn that he claims as his main residency.
McFeeters maintains a digital footprint and has a record allowing people to see what he’s all about. Yet compared to Tuberville, it’s Roadrunner vs. Wile E. Coyote.
The Alabama Gazette gave McFeeters a glowing writeup, saying, “Ken McFeeters believes that Alabama is at a critical crossroads-one that demands a shift away from the establishment and a return to the values that have historically made this state strong.”
Yet nothing screams “establishment” like owning a well-established insurance enterprise, running for the House and being a chairman of the regional Republican club. McFeeters’ pedigree, along with this stunt to gain more name recognition and street cred, may well work against him.
Other than “Alabama” Will Santivasci being listed in Wikipedia, Ballotpedia, and secretary of state records as a candidate, this man is a mystery. Santivasci doesn’t even have a candidate website, and a cursory internet image search renders no results. Not exactly the way to win a statewide race.
The Democrat slate for governor is even more full, with six people wanting to give Tuberville a run for his money.
Former U.S. Sen. Doug Jones (D-Mountain Brook) lost his Senate seat to Tuberville in the 2020 election and has been languishing in backbencher obscurity ever since. Jones must relish the prospect of being beaten by Tuberville a second time.
Former Alabama Republican Party chairman John Wahl laughed off Jones’ candidacy:
‘His record in the U.S. Senate spoke for itself — a consistent pattern of voting for extreme liberal policies that placed him firmly in line with the radical principles of the National Democrat party and far outside the values of the people of Alabama.’
Jones has already stepped in it by coming out against the CHOOSE Act and floating the conspiracy theory that President Donald Trump will use Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to steal elections.
The other five Democrats on the slate are Dr. Will Boyd, JaMel J. Brown, Yolanda Rochelle Flowers, Chad “Chig” Martin and Nathan “Nate” Mathis.
Dr. Will Boyd ran for the U.S. Senate in 2022 and was bested by current U.S. Sen. Katie Britt (R-Montgomery). Boyd’s platform is the usual gobbledygook of progressive buzzwords: “education,” “equity,” and “voter suppression.” After many revelations about education indoctrination, DEI-madness, and illegal aliens suppressing American citizens’ vote, he might want to rethink this.
Pastor JaMel J. Brown wants constituents to know he is an expert multitasker. Brown touts credentials as a community leader, activist, talk show host, and social media content creator. As they say in Texas, he’s all hat and no cattle.
Yolanda Rochelle Flowers, “a career educator and rehabilitation services expert in Tennessee,” ran for governor in 2022 with a goal to “reconstruct Alabama.” At that time, this meant more education funding, Medicaid expansion, and criminal justice reform.
Flowers was outspent by Gov. Kay Ivey and will probably be outspent by Tuberville. It will be different this time around, however, Flowers said, telling the Alabama Gazette:
‘Tthis [sic] time around? it it's [sic] going to be more challenging,’ Flowers said. ‘This year it's like a a [sic] heaviness okay and I say that he is popular because of the president (Donald J. Trump) you know he's he's [sic] loyal you know, a man that really doesn't like people, a man, and I have to be honest, and you may send his own up to Washington, but I just don't care.’
Flowers said her campaign will be focused on the “poor and the marginalized.” Yet how many of these people can financially back her, let alone actually vote?
Cannabis businessman Chad “Chig” Martin is running on a protest platform. After the passage of HB445, which greatly restricted cannabis distribution in the state, Martin wants to decriminalize natural medicines and see an increase of holistic practitioners. Martin also wants to expand Medicaid and change insurance requirements to accept alternative medical treatment.
Sadly, Martin will be outspent by Tuberville AND the Certificate of Needs (CON) Board with their corporate healthcare strongholds. Those of us who support alternative medicine having a greater foothold in the state salute him but probably will not vote for him.
Finally, Nathan “Nate” Mathis, is a serial candidate, who ran for District 2 in 2020 and District 29 in 2022. In 2020, Mathis ran on Social Security and support for farmers. His platform for this race is unclear, and his digital and social media footprint are scarce.
So many candidates, so many reasons why Tuberville is running away with this race.
Jennifer Oliver O'Connell, As the Girl Turns, is an investigative journalist, author, opinion analyst, and contributor to 1819 News, Redstate, and other publications. Jennifer writes on Politics and Pop Culture, with occasional detours into Reinvention, Yoga, and Food. You can read more about Jennifer's world at her As the Girl Turns website. You can also follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Telegram.
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of 1819 News. To comment, please send an email with your name and contact information to [email protected].
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