Category: 2018 Elections
Are You Ready to Vote?
After nearly a year of campaigns, the general election is right around the corner. Polls will be open Nov. 6 for voters to choose people to represent them from the statehouse to the courthouse.
Up for grabs is the governor’s office, legislative seats, judicial positions and county offices, to name a few.
If you want to vote in these races, important deadlines are looming:
Oct. 22 is the deadline to register to vote.
Nov. 1 is the last day to apply to vote by absentee ballot.
Nov. 5 is the last day to deliver or postmark an absentee ballot.
Nov. 6 is election day. Polls are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. across the state.
If you need to register to vote, you can apply online through the Secretary of State’s Office or print an application to be mailed to your county Board of Registrars. You also may call 800-274-8683 to have an application mailed to you or apply in person through your Board of Registrars.
If you’re in doubt about whether you’re registered to vote, you can check your status through another SOS web page or call your county’s Board of Registrars. In Jefferson County, the board’s office is in the courthouse downtown and can be reached at 325-5550.
Incumbent AG Has Raised More Than Six Times as Much as the Challenger
Attorney General Steve Marshall takes an overwhelming financial advantage into the final month of the campaign as he seeks his first full term in the office.
The Republican incumbent raised $224,700 last month, bringing his total in itemized cash contributions since the campaign began last year to $2.92 million, according to reports filed this week with the Alabama Secretary of State’s Office.
Democrat Joseph Siegelman collected $92,673 in cash during September to raise his overall total to $445,276. Read more.
Democrat Vance Tops GOP Candidate Parker in Race for Chief Justice
Democrat Robert Vance raised more than twice as much campaign cash as Republican Tom Parker in September and maintains a significant financial advantage as the race for chief justice of Alabama enters its final month.
Vance, a Circuit Court judge in Birmingham, collected $165,425 in itemized cash contributions last month, raising his total for the campaign to $810,547, he reported this week to the Alabama Secretary of State’s Office.
Parker, a member of the Alabama Supreme Court who is seeking to move into the chief justice’s chair, reported contributions of $65,200 in September. His total since the campaign began last year is $591,877. Read more.
Ainsworth Leads in Fundraising by a Wide Margin Over Boyd in Lt Gov Race
Republican Will Ainsworth collected $141,900 in September for his campaign for lieutenant governor, far outdistancing the $11,885 raised by Democrat Will Boyd, according to reports filed this week with the Alabama Secretary of State’s Office.
Read more.
Ivey Still Doubles Maddox’s Fundraising One Month Before the Election
With the election one month away, Gov. Kay Ivey has raised more than twice as much as Democratic challenger Walt Maddox in the campaign for governor.
The Republican incumbent collected $510,457 in cash contributions during September, bringing her total to $3.88 million since the campaign started last year, according to reports filed this week with the Secretary of State’s Office. She heads into the final four weeks of the campaign with an account balance of $510,888.
Maddox brought in $373,016 last month, raising his total for the campaign to $1.83 million. That leaves him with a balance of $500,339, his report showed.
Ivey continued to raise large amounts from political action committees, law firms and businesses. Her biggest contributors during September were the Alabama Forestry PAC, $25,000; the Balch & Bingham law firm’s PAC, $15,000; and SHR PAC, chaired by lobbyist and Republican activist Dax Swatek, $12,000.
Overall, the governor’s top contributor is James W. “Jimmy” Rane of Abbeville, founder of Great Southern Wood Preserving and identified by Forbes Magazine as Alabama’s richest person. He has given Ivey a total of $300,000 during the campaign. Franklin PAC, a business-oriented committee in Montgomery, has given $125,000 and the Beasley, Allen law firm of Montgomery has contributed $105,000.
Maddox’s report for activity in September showed a continued flow of money from six PACs operated by Mike Echols of Tuscaloosa. Cash, CMG, ET, Leadership, Pride II and T-Town II PACs contributed $25,000 each to the Democratic nominee; that brings their total for the campaign to $611,400.
Among the other top donors for the Tuscaloosa mayor was Greenetrack, at $70,000. Read the story and lists of contributors.
Read more stories about campaign financing in this year’s election.
Ainsworth Leads in Fundraising by a Wide Margin Over Boyd in Lt Gov Race
Democrat Vance Tops GOP Candidate Parker in Race for Chief Justice.
Incumbent AG Has Raised More Than Six Times as Much as the Challenger
Judge Bob Vance Makes Second Run for State’s Top Judicial Seat
WBHM’s Andrew Yeager interviewed Judge Bob Vance, who is trying for a second time to become the head of Alabama’s court system. Vance has been a civil circuit judge in Jefferson County since 2002. This year Vance is the Democratic nominee for Alabama’s chief justice. He faces current Supreme Court Associate Justice Republican Tom Parker in November.
Yeager talked with Vance about a range of issues, including opioid abuse, politics on the court and funding for state courts. Read more and listen to the interview.
Ainsworth Leads Boyd by Wide Margin in Lt Governor Fundraising
Republican nominee for lieutenant governor Will Ainsworth continues to outpace Democratic rival Will Boyd by a wide margin in fundraising, according to August reports filed Wednesday with the Secretary of State’s Office.
In August, the Ainsworth campaign raised $144,775, more in a single month than Boyd has raised during the entire 2018 election cycle. Boyd during the month raised $9,286 in cash donations and $32,800 in in-kind contributions. Read more.
Vance’s Campaign Coffers Swell in Chief Justice Race
Democrat Robert S. “Bob” Vance Jr.’s campaign coffers swelled in August in the race to be the next chief justice, continuing his lead in fundraising for the high court seat he nearly won in 2012.
During the month, Vance raised $208,969 in cash and $733 in in-kind contributions. The campaign spent $27,972 in August
Republican challenger Thomas “Tom” Parker of Montgomery, an associate justice on the state’s high court, raised $3,910 in cash during the month and ended the month with $17,509 in the bank. Read more.
Merrill’s SOS Campaign Leads Milam’s Almost 3-to-1 in Contributions in August
Incumbent Secretary of State John Merrill, a Republican, out-raised his Democratic challenger, Heather Milam, by about a 3-1 ratio in August, according to monthly campaign finance reports filed Wednesday.
For the month, Merrill raised $28,110 in cash contributions and $4,010 in in-kind contributions, and Milam raised $11,310 in cash. Read more.
Marshall Maintains Big Fundraising Lead Over Siegelman in AG’s Race
Attorney General Steve Marshall maintained his fundraising lead over Democratic opponent Joe Siegelman in August.
Marshall, a Republican, raised $133,566, according to his campaign’s monthly disclosure report filed with the Secretary of State’s Office. Siegelman, a Birmingham lawyer and son of former Gov. Don Siegelman, reported raising $94,449. Read more.
