19 Alabama Counties Turn Blue For Doug Jones As Democrats Celebrate Historic Gains, But Republicans Hold Statewide Power

Alabama Democrats Deliver Their Strongest Gubernatorial Performance In Years, Pick Up Legislative Seats, And Send A Message To Republicans — But The Road To Political Change Remains A Long One

MOBILE, Ala. (BuzzReport) — Alabama Democrats may not have captured the Governor’s Mansion on November 3, but election night delivered something the state Democratic Party has been searching for over the past decade: evidence that Alabama’s political landscape may be more competitive than Republicans have been willing to acknowledge.

Former U.S. Senator Doug Jones made an unexpectedly strong showing against Republican Tommy Tuberville, winning 19 of Alabama’s 67 counties and bringing the gubernatorial race closer than many political observers anticipated.

Although Tuberville ultimately defeated Jones statewide, the Democratic performance represented a substantial shift in voter sentiment compared with previous gubernatorial elections.

For Democrats, the results provided reasons to celebrate. For Republicans, they offered a warning that previously dependable voting patterns are not necessarily guaranteed to continue.

But there is another important story behind the election results: Alabama voters demonstrated that they were willing to split their tickets, supporting candidates from different political parties depending on the office and the individual seeking election.

19 Counties Turn Blue: Why Democrats Are Celebrating

Doug Jones won 19 Alabama counties, marking the strongest performance by a Democratic gubernatorial candidate since Ron Sparks won 20 counties in 2010.

The counties Jones carried included:

Barbour, Bullock, Clarke, Conecuh, Dallas, Greene, Hale, Jefferson, Lowndes, Macon, Madison, Marengo, Mobile, Montgomery, Perry, Russell, Sumter, Tuscaloosa and Wilcox.

Several of these counties have historically supported Democratic gubernatorial candidates, particularly in central Alabama and the Black Belt.

However, Jones expanded the Democratic map by winning Barbour, Clarke, Conecuh, Madison and Mobile counties, demonstrating that his campaign attracted support beyond the traditional Democratic strongholds.

Jefferson County delivered Jones his largest victory, defeating Tuberville by approximately 90,312 votes.

Mobile County also became an important part of the Democratic victory map, with Jones receiving more than 69,000 votes.

The results gave Democrats something they desperately needed: proof that their candidates could compete in places where Republicans have increasingly dominated statewide elections.

However, winning counties does not necessarily mean Democrats captured the majority of voters statewide.

Tuberville still won Alabama by approximately 66,000 votes.

Doug Jones Performs Better Than Expected, But Tuberville Wins Statewide

The final unofficial statewide gubernatorial results showed:

• Tommy Tuberville (Republican): 872,561 votes — 51.8%.
• Doug Jones (Democrat): 806,253 votes — 47.9%.
• Write-in candidates: 5,921 votes — 0.4%.

Tuberville defeated Jones by approximately 66,308 votes, a margin of 3.9 percentage points.

Although Jones lost, his performance represented a significant improvement for Democrats compared with previous elections.

The governor’s race was Alabama’s closest gubernatorial contest since 2002.

Jones’ performance also suggests that some Republican voters may have been willing to cross party lines and support a Democratic candidate.

While county-level results cannot establish how individual voters cast their ballots or identify their party affiliations, the significant shifts in several traditionally Republican counties suggest that split-ticket voting and crossover support may have played an important role.

For Democrats, the message is straightforward: Alabama is not politically unreachable.

But winning 19 counties is not enough when Republicans continue to produce the larger statewide vote total.

Mobile County: A Democratic Victory For Jones, But Republicans Keep The Sheriff’s Office

Mobile County provides one of the clearest examples of why Democrats must be careful when interpreting election results.

Democrats celebrated Jones’ victory in Mobile County, where he defeated Tuberville by a substantial margin.

The gubernatorial results were:

• Doug Jones: 69,263 votes — 54.46%.
• Tommy Tuberville: 57,590 votes — 45.28%.
• Write-in: 326 votes — 0.26%.

Jones won Mobile County by 11,673 votes.

However, that Democratic performance did not translate into victory in every contested race.

Republican incumbent Sheriff Paul Burch defeated Democratic challenger Pamela Laffitte, securing another term as Mobile County sheriff.

The unofficial sheriff’s race results were:

• Paul Burch (Republican): 64,937 votes — 51.57%.
• Pamela Laffitte (Democrat): 60,984 votes — 48.43%.

Burch won by 3,953 votes.

The sheriff’s race demonstrated that voters were making different decisions depending on the office.

A voter could support Doug Jones for governor while choosing a Republican candidate for sheriff or another position.

That is an important distinction that should not be overlooked when evaluating the election.

Democrats can celebrate Jones carrying Mobile County, but that victory should not automatically be interpreted as a complete Democratic takeover of local politics.

The results also show Republicans remain competitive in Mobile County, even when Democratic candidates perform well at the top of the ballot.

Republicans Still Control The Majority Of Alabama’s Political Landscape

Despite the Democratic gains, Republicans maintained their statewide advantage.

Tuberville won the governor’s race, and Republicans captured the other major statewide offices.

Republican Barry Moore defeated Democrat Everett Wess in the U.S. Senate race.

The statewide results included:

• Governor: Tommy Tuberville (R).
• U.S. Senate: Barry Moore (R).
• Lieutenant Governor: John Wahl (R).
• Attorney General: Katherine Robertson (R).
• Secretary of State: Caroleene Dobson (R).
• State Treasurer: Young Boozer (R).
• State Auditor: Andrew Sorrell (R).

Republicans also maintained control of the Alabama Legislature.

The election demonstrated that Democrats have made progress, but they still face a Republican political organization with considerable strength throughout rural Alabama and many suburban communities.

The challenge for Democrats is no longer simply identifying counties where they can win. It is building enough statewide support to turn those victories into control of government.

Democrats Make Legislative Gains, Defeat Republican Incumbents

One of the most significant developments of election night came from Alabama’s legislative races.

Democrats picked up two Alabama House seats and two Senate seats, weakening Republican supermajorities in both chambers.

Among the biggest victories was Democrat Jared Sluss defeating Republican State Senator Sam Givhan in Senate District 7.

Sluss received 30,255 votes to Givhan’s 29,678, winning by just 577 votes.

The victory was particularly significant because Givhan was an incumbent Republican representing the Huntsville-area district.

The result demonstrated that even established Republican officeholders can become vulnerable when voters are dissatisfied or Democratic candidates successfully organize their supporters.

Democrats also celebrated the victories of Rudolph Valentino Drake in Senate District 2, Nell Brown in House District 15 and Allison Montgomery in House District 25.

Montgomery’s victory was particularly historic, making her the first transgender candidate elected to Alabama’s state legislature.

The legislative results were a meaningful accomplishment for Democrats, although Republicans retained their supermajorities.

The distinction is important: Democrats gained four seats across the Legislature, not four House seats and two Senate seats.

The gains were two seats in the House and two in the Senate.

Shomari Figures Delivers Another Major Democratic Victory In Congress

Another important Democratic victory came in Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District.

Democratic Congressman Shomari Figures won reelection, defeating Republican challenger Rhett Marques following a contentious legal and political battle over Alabama’s congressional district boundaries.

Figures received:

• Shomari Figures (Democrat): 124,422 votes — 53.7%.
• Rhett Marques (Republican): 107,049 votes — 46.2%.

Figures won by approximately 17,373 votes.

The victory was particularly important because of the controversy surrounding Alabama’s congressional map.

Republicans had hoped that changes to the congressional district boundaries would improve their chances of capturing the 2nd Congressional District and potentially expand their congressional advantage.

Instead, Figures successfully defended the seat.

The outcome represented another important victory for Alabama Democrats and demonstrated that redrawing political boundaries does not guarantee a particular election result.

Democrats will continue to point to Figures’ reelection as evidence that voters in the district were not prepared to surrender their Democratic representation.

Meanwhile, Republicans retained the majority of Alabama’s congressional delegation, with Democrats holding two of the state’s seven U.S. House seats.

Millions Of Alabama Voters Stayed Home

Perhaps one of the most important numbers from the election has little to do with the candidates who won or lost.

It is the number of registered voters who never cast a ballot.

Alabama recorded approximately 1,693,621 ballots in the November 3 general election, according to unofficial statewide results.

With approximately 3.85 million registered voters, turnout was roughly 44%.

That means approximately 2.16 million registered voters did not participate in the election.

In other words, more than half of Alabama’s registered electorate stayed home.

This presents an enormous opportunity for both political parties.

For Democrats, increasing participation among their existing supporters could make future statewide races considerably more competitive.

However, Republicans also have an opportunity to expand their electorate by reaching voters who did not participate.

The question for Alabama Democrats is whether they can turn election-night enthusiasm into a sustained voter engagement operation.

Winning an election requires more than having a popular candidate. It requires organization, communication, fundraising, neighborhood outreach and consistent voter participation.

Democrats must develop stronger relationships with voters outside major population centers, particularly in rural communities where Republicans have established significant political advantages.

They must also communicate their positions on education, healthcare, economic opportunity, public safety, affordable housing, infrastructure and the rising cost of living.

Voters need to understand what Democrats are offering and how their policies would improve everyday life.

2028 Is Already Becoming The Next Political Battleground

With the 2026 midterm elections behind them, political parties, potential candidates, campaign strategists and donors are already looking toward 2028.

For Alabama Democrats, the election results offer both encouragement and a warning.

Doug Jones demonstrated that a Democratic gubernatorial candidate can win nearly 48% of the statewide vote and carry 19 counties.

Shomari Figures demonstrated that Democrats can defend congressional representation even when district boundaries change.

Jared Sluss, Rudolph Valentino Drake, Nell Brown and Allison Montgomery demonstrated that Republican incumbents and Republican-held legislative seats can be defeated.

But the larger challenge remains.

Democrats must find a way to turn individual victories into a statewide political movement.

They cannot depend exclusively on presidential election cycles, national political controversies or a handful of strong candidates to generate turnout.

They must build an organization that remains active between elections.

Republicans, meanwhile, will have to examine why Tuberville’s victory came by a considerably smaller margin than many previous Republican gubernatorial victories and why Jones was able to carry counties that Republicans have traditionally expected to win.

Both parties have lessons to take from November 3.

Alabama Democrats Have A Reason To Celebrate, But The Work Is Far From Over

The 2026 election did not deliver Democrats control of Alabama government, but it delivered something that could prove equally important for the party’s future: renewed confidence that statewide competition is possible.

Nineteen counties went blue for Doug Jones. Democrats captured four legislative seats across the Alabama House and Senate. Shomari Figures defended his congressional seat, and several Republican incumbents experienced unexpected defeats.

Those accomplishments should not be dismissed.

At the same time, Republicans won the governorship, retained the other major statewide offices and maintained control of the Legislature.

The Mobile County results also demonstrate why Democrats must distinguish between winning one race and building a winning political coalition across an entire ballot.

For Democrats, the path forward will require more voter participation, stronger candidates, better organization and a message that connects with people across Alabama.

For Republicans, the warning is that voters are willing to cross party lines, split their tickets and consider alternatives when they believe another candidate better represents their interests.

Doug Jones may not have won the Governor’s Mansion, but his performance sent a message that Alabama Democrats should not ignore.

There is still hope for Democrats in Alabama. The question is whether the party can turn that hope into votes, organization and victories when voters return to the polls in 2028.