Don’t compare Doug Jones’ bid to be Alabama’s governor to a track and field race, or a football game, or even the latest Rocky-themed boxing movie.

The former U.S. senator said the stakes are too high to trivialize this campaign.

“It’s not a game. It’s not a game,” Jones said at his campaign kickoff event Friday night at The Theodore in a historic Birmingham industrial area. The presumptive favorite in the race is incumbent Sen. Tommy Tuberville, former football coach for Auburn.

“I’m tired of listening to people talk about sports all the time,” Jones said. “It is not a game. Our lives, our communities, our jobs, our wages, our kids’ education, our health care, our doctors, our nurses — none of this is a game. These are our communities.”

During his speech to about 1,000 in-person supporters and more watching via livestream, Jones cited the song “Crowded Table” by The Highwomen. He said the lyrics depict the kind of community he wants to see in Alabama. It is, he said, the Alabama he saw in 2017 when he beat Republican Roy Moore, former chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, to win a seat in the U.S. Senate.

“It is much like our history in 2017, an anthem about finding strength in unity and ensuring that everyone has a place at the table and a sense of belonging,” the former U.S. prosecutor said. “That, folks, is my vision for Alabama.

“I see Alabama as that house with a crowded table where there is always one more chair so that everyone has a seat at that table, that there is always room by the fire, always a place for everyone, where the door is always open,” he said. “Yeah, we’re all a little bit different (but) nobody gets turned away. We belong to one another, flaws and all.”

Following the ceremony Friday, Jones said his aim is to change the state and empower people.

“I want to make sure that voters have a choice, that voters are the ones making a lot of the decisions, informing the decisions in Montgomery and not just the power brokers and the lobbyists,” he said. “We’re going to look … to save health care in this state. It’s in bad shape. We want to bring back rural hospitals. We want to get a lottery. We want to do the things that people want.”

Jones was reminded that it’s been 25 years since a Democrat was elected governor in Alabama. He said that streak can end if voters compare his record of service to those of candidates running against him.

“I think that’s really important because being a governor, like being a senator, is public service,” he said. “You’re working for the people. I think the difference today – as it was in 2020 and 2017 – is that people are looking for a change. People are hurting out there. They’re losing health care, either because they can’t afford it or they’re going off of the rolls because of the anything-but-beautiful bill that Tuberville and those guys passed.

“Electricity rates are going up (and) people are just uneasy,” Jones continued. “We attract a lot of businesses in this state, but we still have one of the lowest workforce participation rates in the country. We need to change that.”

A Jones nomination win could set up a rematch between Jones and Tuberville, who battled it out in the Senate race in 2020. Tuberville won that contest with about 60% of the vote to return that Senate seat to the Republicans.

But Jones said he isn’t looking too far down the road to the general election. He knows he must first get through the primary for the Democratic nomination, being held in May.

“I’ve said consistently that I’m going to run a very aggressive primary race,” he said. “I want people to compare my record of service to the people of Alabama, to all sections of the people of Alabama, versus the service that may or may not exist with my opponent. Compare the records, and it doesn’t matter what it is. Whether it is service to veterans or HBCUs or the Civil Rights Cold Case Act and the work we did for farmers. I think when people see service, they’re … going to want to nominate somebody that has a really good shot of winning in November. And we can win this in November.

“I’m not taking anything for granted in the primary,” Jones said. “We’re going to work like crazy. But what you saw tonight was an excitement of Democrats and independents and moderate Republicans up and down this state and that’s going to be infectious.”

Several other Democrats have announced they will run for the governor’s seat, which is being vacated by a term-limited Gov. Kay Ivey next year. In the race so far are pastor Will Boyd, educator Yolanda Flowers, pastor and community leader Ja’Mel Brown and small business owner Chad “Chig” Martin.

Ronald Burnette Jr.  is running as an independent.

Tuberville and insurance agent Ken McFeeters are seeking the Republican nomination.