Last Tuesday’s election tightened Republicans’ grip on control of the Alabama Legislature.
But while the party that’s been in charge since 2010 did not change, many of the faces did.
Thirty-five Republican lawmakers are newcomers, 24 in the House and 11 in the Senate. They join a super majority the GOP has wielded since 2010.
Overall, new office-holders in both parties now occupy 42 of the 140 seats in both chambers. Not all are brand new to the process. Three of the new Republican senators were House members during the last term.
The rookie lawmakers didn’t get there by knocking off incumbents. Sen. Paul Bussman of Cullman was the only Republican incumbent to lose, and that came in the primary.
But many Republican lawmakers decided not to run or try for another office, opening up slots for newcomers.
Democratic incumbents were mostly successful, too. Only two lost. Rep. Elaine Beech of Chatom lost to Republican Brett Easterbrook in District 65 in southwest Alabama. Rep. Alvin Holmes, who was the longest serving member of the House, lost to Kirk Hatcher in the Democratic primary. Holmes had served since 1974. Hatcher won the general election over an independent and now holds the District 78 seat in Montgomery.
Overall, Republicans gained five seats in the House, giving them a 77-28 edge over the Democrats. Republicans gained one seat in the Senate and hold 27 of 35 seats.
There are only four women among the 39 new members of the Legislature.
They are Sen. Malika Sanders-Fortier, D-Selma, who replaced her father, Sen. Hank Sanders, in District 23; Rep. Tashina Morris, D-Montgomery, who replaced Democrat John Knight, who made an unsuccessful run for the Senate; Rep. Ginny Shavers, R-Leesburg, who replaced Democrat Richard Lindsey of Centre; and Debbie Wood, R-Valley, who replaced Republican Issac Whorton of Valley, who won a race for circuit judge.
Tuesday’s election also further divided the two parties along racial lines.
All 104 Republican senators and representatives are white. Thirty-four of the 36 Democratic senators and representatives are black. The only two remaining white Democrats are Rep. Neil Rafferty of Birmingham, who replaced Patricia Todd, D-Birmingham, and Sen. Billy Beasley, D-Clayton, who was reelected without opposition in either party.
Rep. Jamie Kiel, R-Russellville, one of the Republican freshmen, won in a northwest Alabama district that had been represented by Democrat Johnny Mack Morrow of Red Bay since 1990. Morrow gave up his seat to run for the Senate, a race he narrowly lost.
Kiel was asked what factors he thought helped flip the district to the Republican column.
“I think his (Morrow’s) popularity through the years has kept it from being Republican,” Kiel said. “But I think it’s just the red wave. I think that the whole state is going that way.”
Kiel, who owns a lawn and garden equipment business in Russellville, said he and a hard-working team of volunteers knocked on thousands of doors. He believes Republican candidates in Alabama benefited from the national political climate, including the contentious fight over the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
“I don’t think your average person in Alabama was very happy with what happened there,” Kiel said. “At least not in our district. When I was knocking on doors, I heard it all the time.”
Kiel said he has not met many of the other House caucus members. He does know three other newcomers from northwest Alabama, Reps. Tracy Estes of Winfield, Proncey Robertson of Mount Hope and Andrew Sorrell of Muscle Shoals.
“All four of us are new and of course we’re looking forward to going down and getting to work,” Kiel said.
A caucus meeting is scheduled for Tuesday.
Hatcher, the new Democratic representative who defeated Holmes in the primary, said last week’s election drove home the point that Alabama remains a solidly Republican state notwithstanding Doug Jones' win in the U.S. Senate special election last year.
“I hear all the noise relating to leadership in the party and all these different things," Hatcher said. “But I honestly have to say, the biggest piece for me, and certainly the takeaway from Tuesday, that was not unexpected, is the fact that it’s just a red state.”
Hatcher said the Democratic Party has to attract more white voters to complement a reliable base of black support. Despite the current imbalance of power, Hatcher said he believes the 28-member House Democratic caucus can work with the Republican majority to promote effective policies.
Hatcher said his priorities are improving access to health care, such as through Medicaid expansion, attracting more employers offering quality jobs in the Montgomery area, and authorizing early voting in Alabama.
“We have to make it a lot easier for people to exercise their civic duty, and that is to vote,” Hatcher said.
Like Kiel and Hatcher, Tashina Morris of Montgomery replaces a representative who had been in place for more than two decades. She is one of the five new Democrats in the House.
Morris, won without general election opposition in House District 77, replacing Knight, who had been in the House since 1993. Knight had been chairman of the Legislative Black Caucus and was a former General Fund budget chairman.
Morris said her initial focus as a new lawmaker will getting to know other lawmakers and listening to her constituents. One specific point of emphasis for her is the need increase access to mental health counseling for students in public schools, including students who are at risk of suicide.
“I believe if we had a mental health physician on staff in the school system, to be able to give the kids someone to talk to, an outlet, about certain issues and problems that they may be encountering, that it would cut down or probably prevent suicide in our communities,” Morris said.
Morris said she intends to make herself available to the people in her district.
“I pass out cards and have my phone number on it,” Morris said. "I’m very easy to access. All you have to do is just call. And I plan to have forums within the community to be able to keep everyone updated and to answer any questions they may have about the community and where it is that we stand and what can we do as a whole together to move forward and bring unity to Montgomery."
Newly elected Rep. Andy Whitt, R-Ardmore, takes over the District 6 north Alabama seat previously held by Phil Williams, a Republican from Huntsville who did not run for reelection. Whitt said it was his first time to seek public office but said he’s been active in the community for more than two decades through both his work in banking and as a volunteer.
“Being a community banker for the past 24 years now, going on 25, I know and I understand the struggles of running a small business and how important it is just to have a job and be able to make our ends meet. I know it’s important to live within our means,” Whitt said.
Whitt’s wife is an assistant principal at Sparkman Middle School in Toney. Whitt said he wants to improve how schools prepare students for the next step in their lives.
“Our kids should be coming out of schools today either ready for college or on a career path,” Whitt said. “So, we need to invest more in workforce development and small partnerships with businesses and local schools.”
Edited at 8:29 a.m. to say that House Republican caucus meets on Tuesday. Edited at 9:22 am. to change the headline and add that three of the new senators previously served in the House. Updated at 10:30 a.m. to add information about racial and gender breakdowns of members. Corrected at 10:50 a.m. to give correct number of total Democratic lawmakers.