Maddox campaign: Senate doesn’t care what Ivey thinks about Supreme Court pick
July 10, 2018State official, governor candidate visit AMSTI Summer Institute
July 19, 2018Are Alabama Democrats sailing into a ‘red tsunami’ this November?
The Democratic “blue wave,” which most political analysts predict will lead to party gains in other states this fall, is about to collide with an “Alabama red tsunami,” the state’s Republican chairwoman said Wednesday.
Democrats say they have a strong list of candidates and are prepared to take on the Republicans for statewide offices in ruby red Alabama.
But political observers believe there needs to be some sort of external, yet-unknown factor that can knock the 2018 Alabama political election year off its normal course in order for Democrats to claim statewide success. In Alabama, no Democrat holds a statewide office, and the GOP claims supermajority status in the Legislature.
“There are not enough Democrats in Alabama to win an issue-driven election,” said Wayne Flynt, a historian and professor emeritus at Auburn University. “There has to be some sort of anger, emotional rallying or some sort of scandal. All of those can drive up Democratic votes.”
He added, “If it’s a normal cycle, Republicans will win a statewide election in Alabama. If it’s just a party vote, the Democrats lose. There has to be something more than that happening.”
Said Quin Hillyer, a conservative columnist based in Mobile: “In any election, the underdog party has to hope for some galvanizing factor to depress their opponent’s turnout and enhance their own. Right now, at least at the state level, I see no obvious such opportunity for the Democrats.”
