Sen. Tommy Tuberville Launches 2026 Alabama Governor Bid, Vows to “Build, Recruit, and Lead”

Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville officially announced on Tuesday that he is running for governor in 2026, setting the stage for a high-profile race to succeed Republican Governor Kay Ivey, who is term-limited. Tuberville’s announcement, made during an appearance on Fox News’ The Will Cain Show and reinforced at a hometown event in Auburn, marks the next political step for the former football coach who parlayed his sideline fame into Senate success in 2020.

“I’m a football coach. I’m a leader. I’m a builder. I’m a recruiter, and we’re going to grow Alabama,” said Tuberville. Framing his candidacy as a return to grassroots leadership, he pledged to overhaul K-12 education, bring manufacturing jobs to the state, and clamp down on illegal immigration. However, he provided few specifics beyond praising the state’s voucher program and calling for increased pressure on school administrators to improve student outcomes.

Tuberville, who coached Auburn University’s football team for nearly a decade before brief stints at Texas Tech, Ole Miss, and Cincinnati, retired from coaching in 2016 and entered politics in 2020 with backing from President Donald Trump. He defeated former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions in a bitter Republican primary, then ousted Democrat Doug Jones to reclaim Alabama’s Senate seat for the GOP.

The senator has maintained a strong alliance with Trump, once calling him “God-sent,” and has leaned heavily into Trumpism throughout his time in Washington. His most controversial move came in 2023, when he blocked military promotions for 10 months in protest of the Pentagon’s abortion travel policy—a move widely condemned, including by members of his own party.

Tuberville’s announcement was met with enthusiasm from Republican leaders and skepticism from Democrats. Former Alabama GOP chair Bill Armistead said Tuberville’s entry would make other GOP hopefuls “think twice,” calling him the early favorite. Meanwhile, former Senator Doug Jones didn’t hold back, calling Tuberville “a failed U.S. senator” and “an embarrassment” to the state.

One issue likely to trail Tuberville on the campaign trail is residency. Critics previously accused him of being more of a “Florida man” than an Alabama native, citing his $4 million beach home in Walton County, Florida. While Tuberville claims residency in Auburn—owning a $270,000 home there and having switched his voter registration from Florida to Alabama in 2019—Democrats have vowed to challenge his eligibility under the state constitution, which requires seven consecutive years of residency prior to election.

Randy Kelley, chairman of the Alabama Democratic Party, confirmed they are preparing to take the issue to court. Tuberville dismissed the criticism, saying, “This is my home. A lot of other people have houses down there [in Florida], but this is my home.”

Tuberville’s decision not to seek Senate re-election opens the door for a potentially competitive race in Alabama’s deep-red political landscape. As he shifts his focus to Montgomery, questions will loom over whether his national profile and Trump-aligned policies can translate into statewide executive leadership—and whether his past controversies will hinder what appears, for now, to be a frontrunner campaign.