Tuberville Following Debate Avoidance Gameplan

Labor Day has traditionally been the time when fall general election campaigns become more active and get more attention as the political season moves into high gear. But for this year's elections, don't expect to see many, if any, face-to-face debates between Republican and Democratic nominees, especially in the governor's race.

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Are Debates Needed?

Republican gubernatorial nominee Tommy Tuberville is making it plain that he sees no need to debate his Democratic Party foe, Doug Jones. "There is so much difference between us, I mean, there’s no reason to get up and argue about the differences in opinions,” Tuberville told media during a campaign stop in Athens last night. “We know where the Democrats stand. We know where conservative Republicans stand. I don’t think there is any reason to kind of get into a debate about that because there really is no debate, just differences in opinions.”

That is the same stance the former Auburn football coach took when he defeated then-incumbent Senator Doug Jones in their 2020 Senate race. The reason is obvious: the risk outweighs any possible reward for Tuberville, who, like in their 2020 faceoff, holds a significant lead in the polls over Jones. He didn't debate him in 2020 and won by almost a half million (60%) votes. This year's governor's race is following along the same path, so why debate?

"The voters deserve one," is how Jones answers that question. He has accused Tuberville of "hiding" and attempting to avoid accountability. Jones points out that debates give voters a chance to compare candidates rather than depend on repetitive stump speeches, political ads, and well-scripted social media posts.

Debate Avoidance Works

Debate avoidance has become a standard practice in Alabama politics, especially for the state's chief executive office. Once a virtually required and expected part of the political process, it has become the main strategy of candidates with significant polling leads.

It started with George Wallace, who did a couple of debates in his early campaigns but switched to debate avoidance as he became one of the state's most dominant political forces.

Governors Bob Riley, Don Siegelman, and Fob James did debate challengers in earlier election cycles, but that ended with Tuscaloosa's Robert Bentley.

The then-legislator refused to debate Parker Griffin, who campaigned with a giant inflatable duck saying Bentley was "ducking" the issues, but Bentley easily won.

In each of her campaigns, Gov. Ivey justified her not debating, claiming, "Alabamians know my record." That prompted one of her challengers, Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox, to comment, “I do not believe that you should hide from the people who pay your salary.”

Most political scientists believe there will be few face-to-face debates on the state and local levels going forward because frontrunners see little to gain from them.

Townsquare Media Tuscaloosa will provide consistent, regular coverage of the 2026 General Elections.