Alabama voters headed to the polls Tuesday in primaries that set two major contests: a governor’s race that will reprise the state’s 2020 Senate matchup and a crowded fight for an open Senate seat. Tuberville, who unseated Jones six years ago, easily won the Republican nomination for governor after picking up Trump’s endorsement, according to results reported by the Associated Press. Jones, a former U.S. attorney who briefly held the Senate seat after winning a 2017 special election, was unopposed for the Democratic nomination.
Jones is seeking to become the first Democrat to win a statewide race in Alabama since his own Senate victory nearly a decade ago. Speaking to supporters Tuesday night, he framed his candidacy around a message of change in a state dominated by the GOP.
“Change means rising wages, including raising the minimum wage,” Jones said. “Change means expanding Medicaid to make healthcare affordable. Change means better jobs.”
Jones said he believes voter frustration with the state’s Republican-led government, particularly on issues such as healthcare and the rising cost of living, could open an opportunity in the deeply conservative Deep South.
The open Senate seat — created by Tuberville’s decision to run for governor — drew a wide field of candidates. On the Republican side, U.S. Rep. Barry Moore advanced to a runoff. The Democratic primary also failed to produce a majority winner, sending its top two candidates to a June runoff as well. The winners will face off in the general election for a seat that both parties consider competitive in a year when control of the Senate is at stake.
Tuberville narrowly lost Alabama’s 2020 Senate race to Tuberville after being appointed to the seat in 2017 to fill the remainder of Jeff Sessions’ term. The governor’s rematch will be the second head-to-head contest between the two men in six years.