Note: This story will be updated throughout the day.
Super Tuesday, the biggest day for presidential primaries, only comes around once every four years. Today, voters in Alabama will be among those in 15 states and one territory heading to the polls to cast their primary votes for the 2024 election — plus numerous local elections and referendums.
Follow along for live updates throughout the day from Super Tuesday in Alabama. After polls close at 7 p.m., results can be found here.
Early Montgomery voters divided over school tax
One item on the ballot in Montgomery County is a referendum to renew a countywide school tax that annually brings in $11 million for Montgomery Public Schools and $1.2 million for Pike Road Schools. The tax has been in place for 40 years, and if voted through, will be collected for another 30.
Prep for the polls: See who is running for president and compare where they stand on key issues in our Voter Guide
Some Montgomery voters on Tuesday morning were vocally against supporting MPS with their tax dollars, and others were similarly passionate in favor of renewal.
“The cry in the education system is always, ‘Give us more money. Give us more money,’ and nothing really seems to improve,” retired educator Tom Ford said. “I think what the education system needs to do is learn to use the money they’ve got and use it wisely. Change some things they’re doing to make a difference in kids’ lives, and stop trying to get more and more money to mismanage.”
Reproductive rights, healthcare on voters’ minds
After the Alabama Supreme Court recently ruled that embryos frozen for in vitro fertilization maintain the same legal protection as children, there was an expectation that IVF access would become a motivating issue for voters on Super Tuesday.
Leading up to election day, Alabama led all Super Tuesday states in Google searches for IVF and related topics.
Also, several voters at First Christian Church in East Montgomery said their stances as pro-life or pro-choice informed the way they were voting across state and local elections. One voter said he was focusing on his position as “pro-family” above all else.
“The ruling probably didn’t change the way I voted, but it made it feel even more important,” Democrat voter Beth Wicker said. “Our constitution says there’s supposed to be separation of religion and law, and that’s not happening. I don’t think the people who are doing this understand.”
Wicker also emphasized that every single vote is important, even if you’re a Democrat in a deep red state like Alabama.
Turnout light at Prattville box
PRATTVILLE − Turnout in the party primaries at one of Autauga County’s largest precincts was lighter than expected Tuesday morning.
“We usually have 10 to 15 people standing in line when we open the doors,” said Harold Hammond, chief inspector for the Trinity United Methodist Church site in Prattville. “This morning we opened the doors and no one was out there.”
The forecast was calling for a 90 percent chance of rain in the area after noon.
Donuts delivered on election day
PRATTVILLE − An Autauga County election day tradition continued with the sheriff providing glazed donuts to poll workers. Sheriff Mark Harrell and his deputies delivered 62 dozen donuts throughout the county’s polling places.
The tradition goes back at least three decades and three sheriffs. Retired Sheriff Herbie Johnson was making the deliveries in the early 1990s and the effort continued under the late sheriff Joe Sedinger.
This is Harrell’s first election cycle. It’s a joke in the county − with an air of seriousness − that elections won’t take place without the donuts.
For his part Harrell knew he had better deliver, in more ways than one.
He made three deliveries personally as polls opened, ending up at the Jones polling site. Jones is an unincorporated community in the far northwestern reaches of the county.
“I pulled up at Jones at 7:12 (a.m.) and I walked in, and they said ‘We were about to call you,'” Harrell said with a laugh. “Everybody smiled when I walked in with those boxes. I asked them if they needed anything, if everything was going alright.
“All they wanted to talk about was the donuts.”
What do I need to bring to the polls?
In Alabama, people need a photo ID to vote. They can use:
- Alabama Driver’s License, not expired more than 60 days
- Valid Alabama non-driver identification card
- Valid Alabama photo voter identification card
- Valid state-issued I.D. (Alabama or any other state)
- Valid United States passport or passport card
- Valid Federal-issued identification card
- Valid employee identification card from the federal government, state of Alabama, county government, municipality, board, authority or other entity of the state
- Valid student or employee identification card from a college or university in the state of Alabama
- Valid U.S. military identification card
- Valid tribal identification card
- Pistol permit, must have a photo and not be expired
Polls open in Alabama
Polling places across the state will open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. Tuesday, barring any unforeseen circumstances. For example, back in 2022, Montgomery County voting times were extended by 45 minutes because of software malfunctions across a majority of polling places in the area.
As long as voters are in line to cast their ballots by 7 p.m., they will be allowed to vote after closing time.
For Democrats, incumbent President Joe Biden leads the race without any notable opponents, and former President Donald Trump is far ahead of former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley in the running for the Republican nomination.
Alabamians will also get the chance to vote on five of nine seats on the Alabama Supreme Court this year, but only one is contested: the position of chief justice. Justices in the state are elected for six year terms, and because of the imposed age limit of 70 years old, current Chief Justice Tom Parker could not seek reelection. The two conservative judges on the Republican ballot are Associate Justice Sarah Stewart and former state Sen. Bryan Taylor.
Other items on today’s ballots include nominees for the recently redrawn 2nd Congressional District, three Montgomery County Commission seats, a State Board of Education seat, Montgomery County probate judge, a statewide constitutional amendment on the legislative process and a referendum on a significant education tax.
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