CAMPAIGN 2026: Tuberville to announce political plans Tuesday
Photo from the Office of U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville
CAMPAIGN 2026: U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Alabama) says he will announce whether he will run for governor on Tuesday.
Action 8 Political Analyst Steve Flowers and people close to Tuberville say they believe that he will enter the race. Flowers says Tuberville will be the favorite to win.
Two potential gubernatorial candidates, Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth and Attorney General Steve Marshall, both say they will not run, leaving the door wide open for Tuberville.
Tuberville, well-known for his career as a college football coach, including at Auburn, told the Associated Press that he intends to make his plans known on Tuesday.
“It was a hard decision,” Tuberville said on whether to seek re-election to the U.S. Senate next year or make a run for governor.
Tuberville has aligned himself closely with President Donald Trump both in his 2020 Senate campaign and during his Senate term. “God sent us Donald Trump,” Tuberville said during his campaign.
Club for Growth PAC this week endorsed Tuberville in the governor’s race “should he announce his candidacy.”
“Coach Tuberville has been a steadfast leader for commonsense policy reforms in the United States Senate, and would champion fiscal responsibility, school freedom, and tax cuts in Montgomery,” said Club for Growth PAC President David McIntosh.
Action 8 Political Analyst Steve Flowers says Tuberville’s prospects are strong:
“His polling numbers look extremely good,” Flowers told Action 8 News by phone from Birmingham. “He seems anxious to be governor.
“In most states it is a step down, being a governor is a stepping stone to being a U.S. senator in a lot of states. But historically, Alabamians have loved the governor’s race and he seems to have adopted Alabama as his home state.
“I think he and Trump are very close and he thinks he can have the same effect and have the same policy decisions, in my conversations with him. I asked him that question and he says ‘We’re going to make some radical changes in state government if I’m governor.’”
In 2023, Tuberville received national attention when he maintained a months-long blockade on military promotions over his opposition to a Pentagon policy that provided travel funds and support for troops and their dependents who seek abortions but are based in states where they are now illegal.
A native of Arkansas, Tuberville was the head football coach at Auburn from 1999 to 2008. He retired from coaching in 2016 after leaving the University of Cincinnati. He is sometimes referred to as “Coach” instead of “senator” by those that work with him.
Gov. Kay Ivey can’t seek a third term due to term limits. She became governor in 2017 upon the resignation of then-Gov. Robert Bentley, when she was lieutenant governor.
The Alabama primaries are May 19, 2026.
(Copyright 2025 The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
