Emerging Gubernatorial Candidates Reach For Issues To Run On
Opinion by Mike Hobson
The world of politics sometimes brings out the best, or the worst, of people you think you know something about. The 2026 Governor’s race is going to boil the cauldron, with candidates looking for talking points they think may give them a vote getting edge over the competition.
Doug Jones, a long-time Democrat, has entered the race for Governor and his popular competitor, Former Auburn Coach and U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville, is his formidable Republican opponent.
Jones became well known in Alabama after Bill Clinton appointed him U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama (1997-2001). While in that role he prosecuted major civil rights cases, winning convictions against two members of the KKK for the 1963 bombing of the Birmingham 16th Street Baptist church. He returned to private law practice in Birmingham and re-emerged on the political scene when former Senator Jeff Sessions resigned to become U.S. Attorney General.
Jones ran against former Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore, narrowly defeating Moore by a 50% to 48% margin. He became the first Democrat to win a U.S. Senate seat in about 25 years after an ugly race that forever humiliated and tarnished the reputation of Roy Moore. Jones served from 2018 to 2021 and was defeated in a landslide race by Tommy Tuberville in the 2020 election.
Jones’ return to the political arena requires him to look for issues that may win votes against Tuberville in the current 2026 race for Governor. In the last few weeks Jones has taken sides in the recent maelstrom involving the Alabama Public Library System. Jones has taken a public stance in opposition to the current Alabama Public Library Service board’s policies, particularly those seen as restricting access to certain books in public libraries. He has positioned himself as a defender of free speech, access to information, and supportive of public libraries — and has promised to overhaul the library board if elected, replacing members whom he says are pursuing a political agenda rather than serving community library needs. These positions seem to revolve around happenings with a single library board in Fairhope, over access by minors to books that contain prurient content. The APLS board has voted to withhold state funding from the Fairhope Public Library by a 3-2 vote.
On a livestream podcast last week Jones said “Well, I got to tell you, Jennifer, that buck stops and stops and starts with the governor of the state, and it will go down from that, and you will see in my administration that the governor will be a champion of public libraries, a champion of free speech, a champion of making sure libraries are free and have access to a lot of information. You are absolutely right. libraries,” Jones argued on his X livestream. “So like so many of our freedom of Speech rights, freedom of the press rights have been under siege in the last couple of years, particularly in Alabama when it comes to libraries.”
“So the governor can do a couple of things,” Jones explained. “The first thing that I can tell you I would do is I’d get rid of a few people on that that library board, and have some people with some common sense and not some crazy political agenda that we see constantly, and so that they can work with public libraries to make sure that folks have access to information.”
“Look and I understand that there are concerns about some books that are maybe inappropriate for young kids, that’s those can be remedied without removing them,” Jones said.
“Those things can be fixed without trying to ban books and do the kind of things that we’ve seen happening. Those things can be worked on with people to try to do the things that are the right things for that community, and libraries should answer to their communities, no question about that.”
The truth is different that the spin Jones is weaving over public libraries and sacred first amendment rights. The APLS board has not attempted or recommended that any books be banned or removed from the Fairhope Library. They have recommended moving sexually explicit materials into sections of the library that limit access by minor children, a position that most sensible adults can support, yet the local Fairhope board has refused.
If you care about your children you should be following what is going on in Alabama with the administration of public libraries and you should be wary of those who accuse their opponents of being militant book banners or book burners. Don’t be fooled by the same “Roy Moore tactics” we witnessed and suffered through in earlier political battles. Do your own research on the issue and be careful when you go to the ballot box in 2026.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This article is an opinion. The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not reflect the views or opinions of Bibb Community Media, The Bibb Voice or the Centreville Press.
https://www.bibbvoice.com/2025/11/16/rebecca-watson-parental-rights-are-not-censorship/
