VOTER GUIDE: 5 Things To Know Before May 24 Primaries In West Alabama

TUSCALOOSA, AL — Monday morning marks less than 24 hours before the polls open for the Tuesday, May 24 primary elections in Alabama, so let's get you all caught up before you cast your ballot in west Alabama.

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As a reminder, the polls will open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m.

1. Where do I vote?

The Tuscaloosa County Commission in February unanimously approved changes to three different voting precinct locations in the county, as Patch previously reported, following requests by members of each community.

In total, Tuscaloosa County has 54 voting wards for county, state, and federal elections.

The changes approved by the Commission impacted Ward 22 (Northport), Ward 31 (Coker) and Ward 50 (Vance).

Click here for a complete list of polling locations

2. What's at stake?

Those voting in the Democratic Primary will see six candidates for governor and three for United States Senator. The Democratic Primary ballot will also see some Tuscaloosa County voters cast ballots in the race for Alabama House of Representatives District 72.

Apart from those offices, registered voters in Tuscaloosa County will also decide party Executive Committee members at both the state and county levels.

Conversely, the GOP Primary ballot will see nine Republican candidates for governor, including incumbent Kay Ivey, in addition to the highly-contentious U.S. Senate primary that features a total of six candidates.

Republican voters in Tuscaloosa County will also see contested primary races for Alabama Attorney General, Secretary of State, State Auditor, Public Service Commission, Alabama Supreme Court Associate Justice - Place 5, Alabama House of Representatives - District 61 and Alabama Republican Executive Committee.

SAMPLE BALLOTS

• Republican Primary sample ballot
• Democratic Primary sample ballot

3. Contested local offices

Two primary races for the Alabama House of Representatives will be closely watched by many politicos on opposite ends of the county on Tuesday.

In House District 72 — which covers a small portion of southern Tuscaloosa County — incumbent state Rep. Ralph Howard is set to face Curtis Travis in the Democratic Primary. No Republicans qualified to appear on the ballot in the House District 72 race.

Howard has served in the office since 2005.

However, in terms of a local race that will see the biggest turnout on Tuesday, that distinction will be reserved for the GOP Primary for the soon-to-be vacant House District 61 seat, after State Rep. Rodney Sullivan, a Republican from Northport, chose not to seek a second term in the legislature.

The GOP Primary for House District 61 will feature two candidates running for elected office for the first time: Retired Northport Police Department Captain Ron Bolton and former Tuscaloosa-area radio personality Kimberly Madison.

No Democrats qualified to appear on the Nov. 8 ballot.

District 61 covers a large part of northern Tuscaloosa County, including the city of Northport, along with a wide swath of Pickens County.

4. Amendments

There will be only one statewide amendment to appear on both primary ballots on Tuesday.

Here is how the amendment will read:

"Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, authorizing the issuance and sale of general obligation bonds of the State of Alabama of up to $85,000,000 for the purposes of the improvement, renovation, equipping, acquisition, provision, construction, and maintenance of Alabama state parks under the jurisdiction of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and public historical sites and public historical parks under the jurisdiction of the Alabama Historical Commission. (Proposed by Act 2021-326)"

5. Other dates and what else to know

• In the event of runoffs in any races, the Primary Runoff will be set for June 21, while the General Election will be held on Nov. 8.
• Alabama does not permit crossover voting. So, if you vote in the Democratic Primary on Tuesday, you will not be permitted to vote in a Republican Primary runoff in the event one is held.
• If you're a registered voter who does not vote in a party primary or who votes on a nonpartisan ballot, you are permitted to vote in the primary runoff election of your choice.
• The Alabama Secretary of State's Office points out that the Cross Over Rule starts over with each election cycle and only applies to primary and primary runoff elections, while not apply to the Nov. 8 General Election.
• The last day to hand-deliver a voter registration application is June 3 for the 2022 primary runoff, while the postmark and online registration deadline is June 6.
• Voters in Alabama must present an acceptable form of photo identification to verify their registration at the polls before receiving a ballot.

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