Montgomery County Circuit Judge Brooke Reid dismissed a lawsuit on Thursday attempting to block the gubernatorial aspirations of U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn).
The lawsuit filed by Barry Ragsdale alleged Tuberville is constitutionally prohibited from serving as governor "because he fails to satisfy the seven-year durational residency requirement contained in the Alabama Constitution."
However, Reid ruled on Thursday that she didn’t have jurisdiction over the issue.
“While declaratory or other injunctive relief may be available to challenge a certified nominee’s eligibility to hold office under the Alabama Constitution, for the aforementioned reasons, this Court finds that it does not have jurisdiction over the sole claim of quo warranto at this time. Accordingly, Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss is GRANTED. This is a final order from which immediate appeal may be taken,” Reid said in a filing on Thursday.
The ruling will likely be appealed to the Alabama Supreme Court. Tuberville is running against Doug Jones, a Democrat, in November to be Alabama's next governor. Gov. Kay Ivey is term-limited from seeking re-election.
Joe Espy, an attorney representing Tuberville, said in a statement on Thursday, “The court's decision today follows the Alabama constitution and the law that has been in effect for generations and generations.”
“Hopefully the court’s decision brings an end to all litigation. The decision on our next governor should not be up to any court, but rather the people of Alabama,” Espy said.
Jordan Doufexis, chairman of Tuberville’s campaign, said, “Doug Jones’ residency hoax just got sacked for a loss as a Democrat judge in Montgomery dismissed yet another desperate lawsuit from 'DC Doug’s' Democrat proxies.”
“For months, DC Doug and his allies pushed the absurd claim that Alabama’s senior U.S. Senator for the last six years somehow lacks Alabama residency credentials. They were so wrong on the law that they started attacking the Alabama Supreme Court in an effort to blame Republican judges before the local judge had even ruled. Well, that excuse just got blown up. Today's ruling didn't come from a Republican court protecting Coach Tuberville; it came from a Montgomery Democrat judge who followed the law and rejected a bogus lawsuit aimed at hijacking the election before Alabama voters could decide,” Doufexis said. “DC Doug cannot run on open borders, men in women’s sports, DEI, defunding the police, the socialist left, or the Biden-Jones record, so his buddies tried to drag Coach through the mud instead. Well, today’s ruling wiped that mud away. Coach is now 5-0 against these ridiculous challenges, and we are confident he will win the championship with the people of Alabama in November."
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