Democratic voting turnout surges, Republican turnout falls during May 19 primary

The May 19 primary in the state saw a decrease in Republican turnout from four years ago and an increase in Democratic voting, though a majority of voters chose to vote in the GOP primary.

According to the Alabama Secretary of State’s office, just over 493,000 (57%) Republican ballots were cast in last week’s primary. That was a decrease from the 2022 midterm election where Republican voters made up 660,800 (78%) of the ballots cast.

The reasons for the drop are not clear. While there were contested races up and down the ballot, the gubernatorial race, where U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville was widely seen as the prohibitive favorite, was noncompetitive. In 2022, Gov. Kay Ivey faced challenges from businessman Tim James and former ambassador Lynda Blanchard, among others, in that year’s Republican primary.

“We are grateful to everyone who showed up at the polls, and we encourage voters to keep that same momentum going as we head into the June 16 primary runoff elections and the August 11 special primary election. Every election matters, and we need voters to turn out just as strongly in the weeks ahead,” said Rep. Scott Stadthagen, R-Hartselle, the chairman of the Alabama Republican Party, in a statement last week.


https://alabamareflector.com/2026/05/28/democratic-voting-turnout-surges-republican-turnout-falls-during-may-19-primary/