By Brian Lyman | Editor
In a major statewide campaign, the summer months are generally a calm period before the winds start whipping up for the fall election. It’s not uncommon to see challengers and underdogs outraise incumbents and favorites over that time. But you always have to remember that the real action begins after Labor Day.
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ELECTIONS 2026
By Andrea Tinker
Democratic gubernatorial nominee Doug Jones raised $622,000 in July to Republican gubernatorial nominee Tommy Tuberville’s $290,000, a feat Jones also accomplished im July. However, Tuberville remains far ahead of Jones in cash on hand, reporting about $9.2 million on hand at the end of last month to Jones’ $1.7 million.
The Alabama Ethics Commission holds a regular meeting on June 3, 2026 in Montgomery, Alabama. (Ralph Chapoco/Alabama Reflector)
GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
By Ralph Chapoco
The Alabama Ethics Commission Wednesday delayed consideration of an advisory ethics opinion and signaled they wanted to take a closer look at precedents over the state’s revolving door policy. Previous commissions have ruled that former employees may hold consulting contracts with former state employers so long as they use an intermediary during a two-year window after leaving the agency. One commissioner said that was a “thin line.”
A sign in a convenience store along Barlowe Road in Hyattsville, Maryland, on Oct. 28, 2025, advertises that it accepts SNAP benefits. (Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)
COMMENTARY
By LaTrell Clifford Wood and Joseph Palomino
About 650,000 Alabamians rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to feed their households. But changes to the program under 2025’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act could leave Alabama on the hook for $174 million in program costs, threatening the future of the program. In this commentary, LaTrell Clifford Wood and Joseph Palomino write that Alabama should study a similar crisis in Arizona, and offer some possible solutions.
ICYMI
AG nominee tells faith leaders he will take action to restrict abortion drug access | Kelcie Moseley-Morris, Stateline
Small Texas law firm run by Trump ally wins contract for legal aid to immigrant kids | Ariana Figueroa, DC Bureau
Price tag for Trump's D.C. deployment of National Guard: $1.4B more through 2029 | Sam Gauntt, DC Bureau
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