Alabama to choose candidates for Tuberville’s open Senate seat

By Caroline Boda
The Center Square

Four candidates are vying for Tommy Tuberville’s open U.S. Senate seat in Tuesday’s Democratic and Republican primary runoff elections in Alabama. The winners of the two races will face each other in the general election on Nov. 3, in which voters will decide who becomes the next U.S. senator from Alabama.

Tuberville, R-Ala., the former Auburn University football coach, is forgoing reelection to pursue a bid for governor. U.S. Rep. Barry Moore, R-Ala., and former Navy SEAL Jared Hudson are eyeing the Republican nomination for Tuberville’s open Senate seat, while attorney Everett Wess and businessman Dakarai Larriett are seeking to become the Democratic nominee.

Alabama’s Senate seats have been a Republican stronghold for 30 years, apart from Democrat Doug Jones’ brief stint between 2018 and 2021. Republicans are counting on holding Tuberville’s seat in November’s midterm elections as they fight to keep their slim Senate majority.

The non-partisan Cook Political Report rates Alabama’s open Senate seat as “Solid Republican,” meaning whoever becomes the Republican nominee in Tuesday’s race is likely to become Alabama’s next senator in November.

After choosing between 10 candidates across two parties in the statewide primary election on May 19, Alabama voters will head back to the polls for a second time on Tuesday to pick from the top four contenders, two Republicans and two Democrats. A runoff election was necessary because of Alabama’s rule requiring a winning candidate to receive more than 50% of the vote, an unlikely feat in a pool of 10 candidates.

Republican runoff

Moore, who currently represents Alabama’s 1st congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives, led Hudson in last month’s primary, raking in 39.2% of the total Republican vote. Moore clinched President Donald Trump’s endorsement earlier this year.

Posting on social media in January, the president called Moore an “America First Patriot,” and noted that Moore “was the first Elected Official in the Country to Endorse me!”

An endorsement by Trump has been make-or-break for Republican candidates in the midterm season so far and has proven fatal for candidates without it. Moore touted this endorsement to The Center Square.

“With President Trump’s complete endorsement, a double-digit win in the May 19 primary, and the support of Alabama conservatives from Mobile to Muscle Shoals, we’re confident in the campaign we’ve put together and look forward to victory on Tuesday,” Moore said.

Moore is a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus and has built a voting record as a fiscal hawk during his five-year tenure representing Alabama in Washington, D.C. Alongside other Freedom Caucus members, Moore pushed for deeper spending cuts in Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act last summer, but ultimately yielded and voted the bill across the finish line with his party.

Moore is up against political outsider Hudson, a former Navy SEAL and founder of a nonprofit working to combat human trafficking. Hudson has committed to supporting deregulation, codifying cuts made by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and cutting taxes for workers and small businesses if elected to the Senate.

Although Hudson did not receive an endorsement from the president, he has focused much of his campaign on being a pro-Trump candidate.

“I will deploy to the Senate to defend President Trump with the same ethos they taught us in SEAL training: I am never out of the fight and I will not fail,” Hudson said on his campaign website.

Despite trailing Moore by more than 13 points in May’s primary, recent polling from The Alabama Poll shows Hudson pulling ahead. Surveying 600 likely Republican runoff voters on May 28, the poll found Hudson leading Moore 48.7% to 39.2%, with 12.1% of the group still undecided.

Moore’s campaign dismissed the survey’s credibility.

“That’s a low-quality poll that was wildly off last time,” a campaign spokesperson told The Center Square. “In its last pre-primary poll, it underestimated Barry’s support by 16%.”

Hudson’s campaign did not respond to The Center Square’s request for comment.

Moore is leading Hudson in campaign fundraising, with funds totaling nearly $3 million compared to Hudson’s $1.8 million, according to the latest filings on the Federal Election Commission’s (FEC) website.

Democratic runoff

Two Democrats are competing for Alabama’s open seat in the Senate and face an uphill battle in the traditionally conservative state.

Wess finished first in the Democratic primary in May with 39.6% of the vote. As the son of a union shipyard worker and veteran, Wess has framed his economic message around this upbringing.

“Those experiences have shaped my commitment to protecting Social Security and Medicare, supporting organized labor, expanding economic opportunity, and ensuring that every Alabamian has a fair shot at the American Dream,” Wess told The Center Square.

Larriett will also appear on Tuesday’s ballot in the Democratic runoff after finishing 10.5 points behind Wess in the primary. Despite this gap, Larriett’s campaign has raised roughly double the amount Wess has. As of May 27, Larriett reported $147,000 in funds compared to Wess’ $74,000, according to the FEC.

Larriett highlighted his second-place finish as a sign of momentum heading into the runoff.

“The May 19 election demonstrated that Alabama voters resonate with my message of investing in our people through education, healthcare, and economic opportunity,” Larriett said.

Larriett claimed Wess is out of step with Democratic voters, criticizing his policy stances on voting rights and abortion.

“Mr. Wess has made it clear that he does not lead effectively in these areas,” Larriett told The Center Square.

Larriett said he is focusing on a get-out-the-vote campaign ahead of Tuesday’s runoff in key areas of the state.

What to know on Tuesday

Polls will be open on Tuesday in Alabama from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time.

Alabama operates under an open primary system, meaning voters do not have to be registered with a political party to vote in primary elections. Voters are, however, required to choose only one election to vote in on Tuesday, as Alabama does not permit voters to participate in two primary elections on the same day.

Tuesday’s runoffs are separate from Alabama’s special election on Aug. 11, when voters in the 1st, 2nd, 6th and 7th congressional districts will head back to the polls to decide between candidates for the House of Representatives under the state’s redrawn congressional map.

The winners of Tuesday’s Republican and Democratic runoff races will go head-to-head in the Nov. 3 general election – on the same ballot where Tuberville seeks to become Alabama’s next governor.