Alabama elections 2022: Here are the statewide candidates on the ballot
Brian LymanThe 2022 elections take place on Tuesday. Republicans are the favorites in all the statewide contests, but Democrats have a chance to flip their first legislative seats in 12 years. The Libertarian Party has also gained ballot access and pushed out a slate of candidates that could cause headaches for some incumbents.
Below, a guide to candidates in the statewide races.
Governor
Kay Ivey – Republican (Incumbent: 2017-present)
Ivey has dialed back her rhetoric – and spending – since winning the primary on May 24, focusing mostly on economics and job creation, and touting the state's low unemployment rate. Facing challenges from the right earlier this year, Ivey supported false ideas that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump; cut an ad criticizing illegal immigration while using the phrase "no way, Jose;" criticized transgender individuals and celebrated a ban on critical race theory, an academic framework aimed at understanding the persistence of racism in American society.
Her campaign website's ad page as Thursday did not contain immigration, transgender or critical race theory spots. The governor spent about $8 million in the lead-up to the GOP contest. Ivey has only spent $1.1 million since.
Yolanda Flowers — Democratic
Flowers, a first-time candidate, has called for a “reconstruction” of Alabama that includes support for a lottery to fund education; support for the expansion of Medicaid to about 137,000 Alabamians who make too much for Medicaid but don’t qualify for subsidies for Affordable Care Act plans; sentencing reform, and greater investments in workforce development.
Through Oct. 31, Flowers raised about $12,000 and spent about $11,000, reporting about $35,000 in in-kind contributions. She has also confronted questions about her views on abortion rights. Flowers had the endorsement of Democrats for Life, an anti-abortion rights organization. Flowers has since indicated support for abortion rights, which led to the organization withdrawing its endorsement.
James Blake – Libertarian
Though Blake, like other Libertarian candidates, is far behind the incumbent in funding, he has pulled in more directly than Flowers, taking in a total of $25,000 through Oct. 31, and spending $22,000.
Blake, a former Birmingham city councilman, said in an interview that as governor, he would freeze hiring “for everything but prisons and public safety;” support school voucher programs and “make our tax and regulatory environment better in the state of Alabama.” He said personally opposes abortion but considers Alabama’s near-total ban on abortion “really extreme,” and supports adding exceptions for sexual assault.
U.S. Senate
Katie Britt – Republican
A former Business Council of Alabama president and CEO, Britt, like Ivey, has pulled back from the feverish spending that characterized the primary race for the election. Britt has hit economic issues like inflation, which she has said she would address by supporting more widespread oil drilling and cutting regulations on businesses (though Congress has relatively little power to address inflation).
Like other Alabama Republicans, Britt supports abortion restrictions, though the campaign did not respond to an emailed question about her position on Republican South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham’s proposal to ban abortions nationwide after 15 weeks. The legislation would not affect Alabama’s near-total ban on abortion. Britt has also said she wants to work to encourage job growth in the state of Alabama, though her campaign has focused on national issues, such as the border, over state ones.
Will Boyd – Democratic
Boyd said he would prioritize job creation as a senator, mainly by emphasizing investments in infrastructure, including broadband, that he said will draw manufacturing companies into Alabama. Boyd strongly supports the Build Back Better and Inflation Reduction Acts passed by Congress, noting that the incentives are encouraging the growth of electric vehicle and battery manufacturing in the state.
Boyd says he personally opposes abortion but says the decision should be left up to the woman and her physician. He said he would vote to codify Roe v. Wade into law. Boyd also said he would work to provide federal incentives that would encourage state leaders to expand Medicaid, and work to increase funding for education.
John Sophocleus – Libertarian
Sophocleus, an economics teacher and 2002 Libertarian gubernatorial nominee,is pro-gun and anti-tax. Sophocleus also supports the legalization of marijuana; opposes qualified immunity for police officers, and calls for school choice programs.
On abortion, Sophocleus said he believes the states should decide access, and said he would oppose any federal legislation to restrict or protect access to the medical procedure. Sophocleus also said he wants to reduce federal spending on education programs, arguing it should be done by the state; replace trade agreements with a “low uniform tariff,” and improve oversight of prisons.
U.S. 2nd congressional district
Barry Moore – Republican (Incumbent: 2021-present)
Moore, seeking his second term in the U.S. House of Representatives, has firmly staked out a place on the right wing of the party. In one of his earliest votes after election in 2020, Moore voted to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, a few hours after a mob of Trump supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol, and later voted against awarding a gold medal to police officers who defended the Capitol that day. Moore also opposes abortion rights; voted against both the Build Back Better act and the Inflation Reduction Act, and voted against the CHIPS Act, a bill aimed at securing the supply chain for CHIPS and semiconductors. The congressman has also worked on health care and employment services for military veterans.
Phyllis Harvey-Hall – Democrat
Harvey-Hall has attacked Moore for his votes against the infrastructure act, saying he left “millions of dollars on the table” in his opposition (both bills passed despite Moore’s opposition). Harvey-Hall has also said she would work to increase federal funding for education, and to give Alabama more incentives to expand Medicaid, such as the federal government paying for the state share for three years. The candidate also said she would focus on veterans' issues, particularly on mental health. Harvey-Hall also says she would codify Roe v. Wade, and supports the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, which aims to restore preclearance to states with a history of racial discrimination.
Jonathan Realz – Libertarian
Realz supports gun rights and accuses the federal government of creating a “banking monopoly.” But Realz also opposes qualified immunity and supports the decriminalization of drugs and sex work. On abortion, Realz said he would support a constitutional amendment guaranteeing bodily autonomy, but says he does not think the federal government has any other role in the issue.
Lieutenant governor
Will Ainsworth - Republican (Incumbent: 2019-present)
The lieutenant governor’s powers in the Senate were once comparable to those of the speaker in the Alabama House, though it now occupies roughly the same position in state government as the vice president of the United States does in the federal government.
Ainsworth has focused on the state’s economy and his support for state legislation aimed at supporting the military and military families. He had no competition from within the party and has amassed a large war chest, with about $1.2 million on hand. His challenge may be less about winning a second term than keeping his margin high enough to prevent the Libertarians from getting on the ballot in two years.
Ruth Page-Nelson – Libertarian
Page-Nelson has emphasized her party’s support for abortion rights and legalized marijuana in campaign appearances, though she also said she favors “school choice” programs and has expressed support for discredited theories about the origins of COVID-19.
Her run represents the best chance for the Libertarian Party to get ballot access in state offices in 2024. With no Democrat in the race, Page-Nelson has made appearances at Democratic events encouraging support for her as the non-Republican in the race. If Page-Nelson can reach 20% of the vote, the Libertarian Party will have ballot access in statewide races in 2024.
Alabama attorney general
Steve Marshall – Republican (Incumbent: 2017-present)
Marshall, seeking his second full term as Alabama attorney general, has tended to emphasize lawsuits appealing to a national Republican audience than specific Alabama issues. Marshall has joined suits over vaccine mandates; masking; making medicine available to transgender children and protecting transgender children from discrimination.
Marshall served as chair of the Rule of Law Defense Fund (RLDF), a part of the Republican Attorneys General Association, in early 2021. The RLDF sent robocalls ahead of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, encouraging people to attend a rally for then-President Donald Trump, who falsely accused Democrats of stealing the election. Marshall said after the riot that the RLDF’s participation in the rally had not been authorized.
Wendell Major – Democrat
Major, the police chief of Tarrant, said he would prioritize work on addressing opioid addiction and would direct more resources to investigate public corruption. Major also says he supports abortion rights and has discussed to need to address mental health issues in the state.
Alabama Supreme Court
Greg Cook – Republican
Cook, an attorney, is running on a conservative platform and said he is not “pro-business or pro-plaintiff.” He also cites his work on Alabama’s rules of civil procedure.
Anita Kelly – Democrat
Kelly, a Montgomery Circuit Court judge, is emphasizing her three terms on the bench and her experience hearing cases.
Secretary of State
Wes Allen – Republican
Allen’s campaign, citing his desire for election security, says he would fight efforts to make voting easier. His campaign website said he opposes mail-in voting, early voting, and no excuse absentee ballots, and highlights his efforts to make curbside voting illegal.
Pamela Lafitte – Democratic
Lafitte supports automatic voter registration, absentee voting, curbside voting and early voting. Lafitte also said she would hire a staffer to review any legislation filed in the Alabama Legislature that could end up suppressing the vote.
Matt Shelby – Libertarian
Shelby said at a League of Women Voters forum last month that he wanted to work to lower Alabama’s high ballot access requirements for third-party candidates, and has expressed support for ranked-choice voting. Shelby also supports automatic voter registration, early voting and no-excuse absentee voting.
State Treasurer
Young Boozer – Republican (incumbent: 2011-2019; 2021-present)
Boozer, seeking his third term in office, cited his experience as State Treasurer, whose duties include receiving and investing state funds and overseeing the state’s unclaimed property and college savings plans. Boozer cited a “knowledgeable and experienced leadership crew” in the office, and said he would continue to work to improve office operations.
Scott Hammond – Libertarian
Hammond did not respond to a message seeking comment.
State Auditor
Andrew Sorrell – Republican
Sorrell, a state representative from Muscle Shoals, says he wants to expand the powers of the office and bring the Department of Public Examiners under its umbrella (a decision that would have to be made by the Legislature).
Leigh LaChine – Libertarian
LaChine, a developer, does not list any specific issues for the state auditor’s office on his campaign website, but supports libertarian stands on education and taxation.
Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries
Rick Pate – Republican (Incumbent: 2019-present)
Pate, seeking his second term in office, emphasizes the work his office has done on programs like hemp cultivation, and the department’s work in connecting agricultural businesses with COVID relief.
Jason Clark – Libertarian
Clark, a computer security contractor, said he wants to increase Alabama’s number of exports; give farmers more freedom to grow the crops they want to grow, like hemp, and encourage the use of nuclear power.
Public Service Commission
Republican incumbents Jeremy Oden and Chip Beeker face Libertarian challengers Ron Bishop and Laura Lane. The PSC, technically a regulatory body, has become an effective rubber stamp for the state’s utilities.
Alabama Legislature
Republicans are guaranteed to hold both chambers of the Legislature: neither Democrats nor Libertarians put up enough candidates to take one or the other. But redistricting could give Democrats a handful of pick-up opportunities. Their best is probably House District 74, where Democratic nominee Phillip Ensler is running against Republican incumbent Charlotte Meadows.
Libertarians have candidates in about 23 House races and 11 Senate races.
Brian Lyman covers politics and state government for the Montgomery Advertiser. Contact him at 334-240-0185 or blyman@gannett.com.