Alabama
Alabama's presidential results shift right — but not because of new GOP voters • Alabama Reflector
Alabama shifted about 3% toward President-Elect Donald Trump in Tuesday’s election. But if unofficial returns are correct, that may have less to do with new Republican votes than a shrinking pool of Democratic ones.
Trump got about 1.4 million votes (65%) in Alabama on Tuesday, according to numbers from the Alabama Secretary of State’s office, while Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, got about 766,680 (34%). About 58.5% of registered voters in Alabama participated in the election, the lowest number since 1988.
But Trump’s support was relatively unchanged from his numbers in 2020. According to the Secretary of State’s figures, Trump only added 11,540 votes to his total. Harris’ total fell by almost 82,000 votes — a drop of about 9.6% — over President Joe Biden’s numbers in 2020.
Experts say this shift points to declining Democratic engagement rather than a surge in Republican support.
Randy Kelley, chair of the Alabama Democratic Party, and several political science professors cited a lack of competitive races and stricter voting access rules as factors behind the lower Democratic turnout. John Wahl, chair of the Alabama Republican Party, pointed to sustained Republican outreach and demographic shifts as the GOP focuses on working-class and minority voters.
“They had many less Democrats on the ballot this time. They had few options to choose from,” Kelley said in a phone interview Wednesday.
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Democratic turnout decreased across the state in both rural and urban areas with significant losses in traditionally Democratic strongholds. In Jefferson County, for example, Democratic votes dropped by 20,000, while Republican votes fell by 8,000. In rural counties, the decrease was even more notable; in Franklin County, Democratic turnout dropped by 25%, compared to smaller decreases among Republicans. Similar drops were seen in the Black Belt, where Lowndes County showed a 22% decrease in Democratic votes from 2020.
Kelley said the limited options available to voters, especially in Black candidates, discouraged turnout. Kelley noted that fewer Black candidates ran in 2024 and said that the party must improve its recruitment efforts.
“Candidates bring out their constituents, and without representation, it’s hard to get people excited about voting,” Kelley said.
Spencer Goidel, a political science professor at Auburn University, said that Alabama’s election landscape in 2024 lacked competitive races to encourage Democratic voters. Unlike in 2020, when then-incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Doug Jones’s campaign drew some left-leaning voters, the current election cycle offered limited engagement.
“If you’re a Democratic voter in Alabama, people can tell you it’s important to go out and vote, practice your civic duty, but at the end of the day, there’s not much of a reason to vote, and I think that that just filters down. It discourages people,” Goidel said.
In Alabama’s seven congressional districts, only District 2 had a Democratic candidate — Shomari Figures — in races considered somewhat competitive. Figures defeated Republican nominee Caroleene Dobson in the district on Tuesday.
Wahl said he believes a Republican focus on economic and educational issues may have contributed to Democrats’ smaller margins in these areas.
“We love to have these new minority voters coming to the Republican Party, kind of seeking refuge from how far left the Democrat Party has gone, and we’re excited about that,” Wahl said.
Enrijeta Shino, a political science professor at the University of Alabama, sees Alabama’s results as part of a national trend where Democratic turnout has dropped while Republican enthusiasm remained steady. Shino said the votes in Alabama mirrored a broader pattern nationwide.
“That shows that Republicans were more energized, probably did better in get-out-to-vote mobilization for their base, and the messaging that they were getting from Trump resonated with them better than the messages Democrats were getting from Harris with her base,” Shino said.”
Alabama’s restrictive absentee voting rules in 2024 also may have affected turnout. The state had effective no-excuse absentee voting in 2020 in response to the pandemic, but state officials ended that program after that election. The change especially affected low-income and hourly-wage workers who may face greater challenges voting in person.
“When you only have Election Day voting, the cost of voting for people is higher, and when the cost of voting for people is higher, you’re going to see people who can’t get off work or have to take care of their children, can’t afford child care, people like that are going to be less likely turn out to vote,” Goidel said.
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Alabama
Where to Shop Last-Minute Alabama Shakes Tickets Online
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Alabama Shakes have lined up a string of North American and European tour dates for 2026. After releasing a No. 1 hit on Billboard’s Adult Alternative Airplay chart last year with “Another Life,” Brittany Howard and the band are headed back to the live stage for a spring and summer run of concerts. Starting on April 16, the band will hit major cities around the US, including Atlanta, Denver and multiple stops in Florida before setting off for a stint in Europe this July.
How to Buy Alabama Shakes’ Concert Tickets, At a Glance
After their incredible 2015 album Sound & Color, Alabama Shakes took a hiatus from 2018 to 2024, so that frontwoman/guitarist, Howard, could focus on her solo career. They would later reunite for a show in Tuscaloosa, Ala in December of that year, which led to a large tour in 2025 from July through September. Luckily for fans, the group decided to extend the tour and festival run in 2026. With their last single coming out in 2025, can we expect more music from the group while on tour?
With their tour kicking off soon and tickets selling fast, we’ve compiled all the best ways to shop Alabama Shakes’ tickets online. Ticketmaster does have some general tickets available, but shifting your focus to several resell sites is a great way sho cheap, last-minute concert tickets as well. See below.
Where to Shop Last-Minute Alabama Shakes’ Tickets Online
With resell sites like StubHub, SeatGeek and Gametime, Alabama Shakes’ fans can shop available concert tickets online and securely. Below, ShopBillboard put together a list of affordable ticket options, including exclusive promo and discount codes. Learn about how you can save on concert tickets for each site below.
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With StubHub, fans can affordable Alabama Shakes’ tickets for as low as $71 in some cities. Shoppers can also take advantage of the site’s filters to find the best tickets and venue seating available. Choose from the number of tickets needed, price and even have estimated fees included in the cost, so there are no hidden surprises. Plus, each purchase is protected by StubHub’s FanProtect, which you can learn more about here.
Another great option for shopping last-minute concert tickets is on Vivid Seats. The resell site has Alabama Shakes’ tickets for as low as $61. The site will also help you determine the best offers available by labeling what dates have deals and displaying the cheapest prices available. If you want to save even more, use the code BB2024 at checkout, to save $20 off orders of $200+.
Your purchase will also be covered by the Vivid Seats Buyer Guarantee, which can you read more about here.
Seat Geek is another affordable option to find cheap Alabama Shakes’ tickets with options as low as $64. The resale ticketing site uses a ranking system with a scale of 1-10 to show which options are the best deal. Tickets marked a one are considered the worst deal whereas options rated a 10 are considered the best deals. Bonus offer: First purchases are eligible to receive $10 off orders of $250+ when you use the code BILLBOARD10 at checkout.
Courtesy of Gametime
Gametime is offering Alabama Shakes’ tickets online for as cheap as $65 right now. To save on concert tickets, shoppers can score an extra $20 off purchases of $150+ when you enter the code SAVE20 at checkout. If you find other sites offering a cheaper price, Gametime’s Price Guarantee Program will give you 110% of the difference back when you show proof to the resale site.
Lastly, Alabama Shakes fans can find cheap tickets on Ticketnetwork starting at $69. To save on concert tickets, shoppers can take advantage of our promo codes that will take $150 off purchases of $500+ when you use the code BILLBOARD150 at checkout or $300 off orders of $1,000+ when you use the promo code BILLBOARD300.
Alabama Shakes 2026 Tour Dates
Take a look at Alabama Shakes upcoming tour dates below, alongside additional musical guest at each venue.
04/16 – Richmond, VA – Allianz Amphitheater at Riverfront ~
04/17 – Asheville, NC – ExploreAsheville.com Arena ~
04/18 – Charleston, SC – High Water Fest
04/22 – Memphis, TN – Grind City Amphitheater +
04/24 – Atlanta, GA – Synovus Bank Amphitheater at Chastain Park +
04/25 – Raleigh, NC – Red Hat Amphitheater +
04/26 – St. Augustine, FL – St. Augustine Amphitheatre %
04/28 – Tallahassee, FL – Adderley Amphitheater %
04/29 – Boca Raton, FL – Sunset Cove Amphitheater %
04/30 – Clearwater, FL – The BayCare Sound %
05/02 – New Orleans, LA – New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
05/24 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre #
05/25 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre #
06/13 – Manchester, Tennessee – Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival
07/01 – Leeds, England – Millennium Square
07/02 – Wasing, England – On the Mount at Wasing
07/03 – London, England – Alexandra Palace *
07/05 – Ghent, Belgium – Gent Jazz Festival
07/07 – Lucca, Italy – Summer Festival
07/09 – Lisbon, Portugal – NOS Alive Festival
07/10 – Bilbao, Spain – BBK Live
07/11 – Madrid, Spain – Noches del Botanico
07/25 – Eugene, OR – Autzen Stadium ^
09/19 – Dover, DE – The Woodlands ^
- ~ with Joy Oladokun
- with Mon Rovîa
- % with Lamont Landers
- with JJ Grey & Mofro
- with Tyler Ballgame
- ^ supporting Zach Bryan
Alabama
Alabama House passes overtime tax cut, grocery tax holiday in major relief push
The Alabama House of Representatives passed HB527 on Tuesday, delivering an Alabama overtime tax cut of up to $1,000 on qualified overtime pay and adding a 60-day grocery tax holiday, combining for a total fiscal impact of $83.4 million.
HB527, sponsored by State Rep. James Lomax (R-Huntsville), would allow taxpayers to deduct up to $1,000 in overtime pay from their state taxable income each year beginning in 2026. The deduction expires after 2028 unless extended.
The bill’s initial fiscal note was $37.4 million. State Rep. Mike Shaw (R-Hoover) offered an amendment on the floor to attach the 60-day grocery tax holiday, bringing the total fiscal note to $83.4 million.
The bill mirrors President Trump’s “no tax on overtime” policy included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, applying similar relief at the state level.
“The men and women working overtime shifts to provide for their families are also providing a significant boost to our state’s economy,” Lomax said. “I am proud to carry this legislation in an effort to support and thank them.”
The grocery tax holiday builds on existing legislative action on food costs. In 2023, the Legislature reduced the state grocery tax from 4 percent to 3 percent. During the 2025 session, the House accelerated that effort by cutting it further to 2 percent.
Alabama families are already saving roughly $236 a year from that existing cut, and the temporary two-month suspension of the remaining 2 percent would deliver roughly $40 in additional immediate relief for a typical family of four.
House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter (R-Rainsville) said the measure reflects a broader legislative push on affordability.
“With fuel prices surging and the price of beef and other essential items at the grocery store nearing all-time highs, it is imperative that state leaders double down on our efforts to lend a helping hand to Alabamians,” Ledbetter said. “Over the course of the last few weeks, I have worked with Governor Ivey and Senate leadership to determine the most expedient and impactful way to provide targeted relief, and we have determined that a 60-day grocery tax holiday presents the best opportunity to lift up every single Alabama family.”
Since 2022, the Alabama Legislature has delivered more than $1.4 billion in tax cuts to working families and retirees statewide. HB527 now moves to the Senate for consideration.
Tuesday was the 25th legislative day. There are five days remaining in the session.
Sawyer Knowles is a capitol reporter for Yellowhammer News. You may contact him at [email protected].
Alabama
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey is hospitalized after a minor procedure, her office says
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey was hospitalized Tuesday after undergoing what her office described as a minor procedure to remove fluid that was pressing on her lung.
The 81-year-old Republican governor will be monitored at Baptist Medical Center South in Montgomery “in the coming days” out of an abundance of caution, Ivey spokeswoman Gina Maiola said in a statement.
The fluid was discovered after Ivey went to her doctor because she was feeling discomfort in her left side and had recently experienced some shortness of breath.
“While it was not emergent, Governor Ivey wanted to get the procedure done as soon as possible so she can quickly get back to 100% to wrap up the 2026 Regular Session,” Maiola said. The legislative session is in its final days.
Her office did not specify how long the governor will be in the hospital or recovering.
“We are in touch with Governor Ivey, and she says she is determined to make a very speedy and full recovery.” Maiola said.
Ivey announced in 2019 that she was undergoing radiation for lung cancer. The governor described it as a small localized spot. Her office said in 2020 that scans indicated the treatment was successful and she was free of disease.
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