Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey (R) was at the historic Lloyds Restaurant on U.S. Hwy. 280 in Shelby County Thursday to kick off her re-election campaign.
“It is great to be here in Birmingham, what an incredible crowd,” Ivey said. “We are here for a simple reason- to keep Alabama working.”
Ivey told the crowd that during the campaign they are going to hear “a lot of politicians making big promises,” and then tearing the state down.
“We are not going to have it,” Ivey said. “Alabama is the greatest state in the nation. We built the best business climate in the country and we delivered the lowest unemployment rate in Alabama history.”
Ivey thanked the people of Alabama for how they dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We came together to help one another as neighbors and I could not be more proud of how ordinary Alabamians came together and rolled up their sleeves and went to work,” Ivey said.
Ivey promised that she will stand up to President Joe Biden (D).
“Joe Biden will never tell Alabama what to do,” Ivey said. “His mandates are dead in Alabama. We sued him and we won. I am standing like a brick wall against Biden and his unconstitutional mandates.”
Ivey spoke out against Critical Race Theory and Common Core standards.
“Here in Alabama, we don’t teach hate,” Ivey said. “Common Core is a bunch of no-good nonsense and that is why we don’t teach it. In Alabama, we teach the basics.
“I banned transgender sports in our schools. As Lt Gov. Ainsworth said - in Alabama, boys play boys’ sports and girls play girls’ sports. That is just Alabama common sense."
“I am honored to be here with Kay Ivey,” Ainsworth said. “Gov. Ivey loves Alabama. Alabama’s economy is on fire.”
Ainsworth said that under Ivey’s leadership, Alabama has created 44,000 new jobs and attracted $19 billion in new investment.
“We have record funding for schools and record pay for our teachers,” Ainsworth said. “We are the number six state ... people are moving to during the pandemic.
“It is important that we have a governor who will stand up for our conservative values, she has done that and she will keep doing that."
State Sen. Jabo Waggoner (R-Vestavia) also spoke about Ivey.
“Gov. Ivey has been a fantastic governor for the state of Alabama,” said Waggoner. “People are concerned in this state and all across this nation. That is why it is critically important to have a strong, proven leader as the governor of Alabama.”
Ivey grew up on a cattle farm in Wilcox County. She went to Auburn University where she was the first female Student Government Association Vice President in school history. Ivey is a former teacher. She held a number of government positions with the state of Alabama including working for the Speaker of the House – the late Joe McQuorkadale (D).
Ivey was elected to two terms as State Treasurer in 2002 and 2006. In 2010, she ran for governor but switched to the Lt. governor race, which she won – defeating former Gov. Jim Folsom (D) who was the incumbent. Ivey was re-elected as Lt. Gov. in 2014. In 2017, Ivey was elevated to governor when then-Gov. Robert Bentley (R) resigned rather than face impeachment. Ivey was elected in her own right in 2018 defeating Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox (D) in the General Election. Ivey is only the second woman in Alabama history to serve as governor and the first Republican to do so.
Ivey faces a crowded field in the GOP gubernatorial primary. Lindy Blanchard, Lew Burdette, Stacey George, Tim James, Donald Trent Jones, Dean Odle, Dave Thomas, and Dean Young are all challenging Ivey in the Republican primary.
The winner of the Republican primary will face the winner of the Democratic primary in the general election. Yolanda Rochelle Flowers, Patricia Salter Jamieson, Arthur Kennedy, Chad “Chig” Martin, Malika Sanders-Fortier, and Doug “New Blue” Smith are all running for Governor in the Democratic primary.
The major party primaries will be on May 24.
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