The Alabama midterm elections are coming up on Tuesday. While most eyes are on the senate and governor race, other elected positions are also up for grabs. One of importance for Auburn residents is State Representative for District 79 which covers the Auburn area. Incumbent Republican Joe Lovvorn, who has held the position for six years, is being challenged by Libertarian candidate Amanda Frison. Read on below to learn more about the two candidates.
Joe Lovvorn
Career: Firefighter; realtor; small business owner
Education: Master’s in business, Auburn University
Experience: Six years as state representative; business owner; public service
Joe Lovvorn is the current Alabama state representative for District 79. He is a member of the Republican party and is currently seeking reelection for his position. He has represented Auburn for six years now. Lovvorn grew up in Graham and graduated from Auburn University in 1999 with his degree in agriculture. He eventually earned his master’s in business from Auburn as well. Lovvorn has held many positions, working as a firefighter, a relator, and a small business owner before being elected to office. Lovvorn is the owner/franchisee of Two Men and a Truck for Auburn/Montgomery.
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Lovvorn says when he launched his first campaign for state representative in 2016, he ran on the basis of common-sense leadership.
“I have looked at each vote made through the lenses of conservative common-sense principles and what is best for the people of Alabama,” he said. “These past six years, I have worked to establish honest and respectable working relationships with leaders across Alabama.”
Lovvorn says one of the biggest issues the district and state currently faces is low labor participation. As he says Alabama’s workforce needs continue to grow, he wants to encourage a “return to work mindset” for the state. He wants to keep taxes low and continue to make the state an appealing place to live for retirees and military families. Lovvorn also considers education to be “the backbone of opportunity” for young Alabamians, particularly in STEM. He wants to continue to provide incentives to train and hire more teachers in the state.
“We should continue to think out of the box for ways of improving our education system, and I plan to continue that focus for the next 4 years,” he said.
Lovvorn feels his experience in small business and as a firefighter both lend themselves to his role as state representative for the Auburn area.
“I take those experiences with me as I evaluate the best way forward with legislation and our state budget goals,” Lovvorn said. “I approach each day with a perspective of making life a little better for our family and yours.”
Amanda Frison
Career: Small business owner; stay-at-home mom
Education: Bachelor’s in psychology, Columbia College
Experience: Small business; for the people
Amanda Frison is running for Alabama State representative for District 79. She is representing the Libertarian party in this election. Frison was raised in the Midwest and moved to Phenix City in 2005. She has been an Auburn resident since 2014. Frison is a military vet who served five years in the U.S. Army as a transportation specialist. She earned her bachelor’s in psychology from Columbia University in 2013. Frison is a small business owner and stay-at-home mother. Frisson and her husband own E-7 Logistics LLC.
As a Libertarian candidate, Frison wants to bring competition against what she sees as party dominance in Alabama politics. She says she wants to “give power back to the people.”
“The biggest reason I decided to run is because of how many races across the state of Alabama would have run unopposed if the Libertarian party didn’t gain access,” Frison said. “It was like 75% I think or even more, and to me, that’s scary because that means we’re taking the voice away from the voters.”
Frison believes one of the biggest issues the state of Alabama faces is education reform. She says she would like to put school choice back in the hands of the parents and deregulate what she calls a “one size fits” all education system. Frison is for pro-prison reform and would like to tackle issues with overcrowding. She is also concerned about ballot restrictions. Frison would also like to reform Alabama’s taxes.
“I can’t think of a tax we don’t have in the state of Alabama,” Frison said. “Grocery tax, income tax, luxury tax, every tax you can think of, property tax, we have them all and that’s a burden on the people.”
Frison says as a business owner and a mother, she represents the people. She believes that is where her experience lies and that it would be a benefit to her if elected.
“I’m going to empower the people, that is I’m going to put it back into their control,” Frison said. “Our own state constitution says that the people are the source of the power and that we have an unalienable and indefeasible right to change our government in a manner that we deem expedient. But we can’t do that if there’s no competition on the ballot.”
