The Dothan Eagle from Dothan, Alabama • A8

A8 Tuesday, November 8, 2022 Dothan EaglENEWS ASSOCIATED PRESS Alabama voters will de- cide races ranging from U.S. Senate and governor to local offices in election Polling places and registration status can be found on the secretary of website, at myinfo.alabamavotes.gov/ voterview.Voter turnout is expected to be moderate, according to a projection by Secretary of State John Merrill. Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m.Here’s a quick look at major state- wide races and issues: US SENATE Republican Katie Britt faces Democratic nominee Will Boyd and Libertarian John Sophocleus in the race for the rare open Sen- ate seat inAlabama.Britt is outgoing U.S. Sen.

Richard former chief of staff and the former leader of the Business Council of Alabama. Britt was en- dorsed by former President Donald Trump in the GOP primary and has empha- sized border security, con- cern about the national debt and a need for new voices in Congress. Boyd, a pastor, supports Medic- aid expansion and efforts to protect theVotingRights Act. Sophocleus, a former college economics instruc- tor at Auburn University, supports the abolishment of federal gun laws and the creation of a tax. GOVERNOR RepublicanGov.Kay Ivey is looking to win a second full term in office as she faces Democrat Yolanda Flowers and Libertarian Jimmy Blake.

Flowers, an educator, is the Black woman towin amajor par- gubernatorial nomi- nation in the state. Blake is a physician and a former Birmingham City Council member. LT.GOVERNOR Republican Lt. Gov.Will Ainsworth faces Liber- tarian Ruth Page-Nelson. There is not a Democratic candidate in the race.

The lieutenant governor pre- sides over the Alabama Senate. However, the most notable thing about the po- sition is that the lieutenant governor becomes gover- nor if the governor leaves office for any reason. SECRETARY OF STATE Alabama will elect a new person to the office that oversees elections. Repub- lican Rep. Wes Allen faces Democrat Pamela Laffitte andLibertarianMattShelby.

Allen, citing security con- cerns, opposes alternative means of voting such as curbside voting, mail-in voting or allowing people to voteabsentee foranyreason. Laffitte supports expanded methods, such as early vot- ing and no-excuse absentee voting, tomakevotingmore convenient. Shelby sup- ports changing stringent ballot access law that has made it difficult for third-party candidates to run. ATTORNEYGENERAL Republican Attorney General Steve Marshall faces Democrat Wendell Major. Marshall is seeking his second full term as Ala- bama attorney general.

His campaign has emphasized his role in lawsuits chal- lenging vaccine mandates and other policies of Pres- ident Joe adminis- tration. Major is the police chief of Tarrant. He has emphasized theneed to ad- dress the opioid cri- sis andmental health crisis. OTHER RACES In the state race, Republican incum- bent Young Boozer faces Libertarian Scott Ham- mond. In the state race, Republican Andrew Sorrell faces Libertarian Leigh Lachine.

In the race for com- missioner of agriculture and industries, Republican incumbent Rick Pate faces Libertarian Jason Clark In the races for Public Service Commission, Re- publican incumbents Jer- emyOden andChip Beeker face challenges from Lib- ertarians Ron Bishop and Laura Lane. In the race forAlabama Supreme Court, Place 5, Republican Greg Cook facesDemocratAnitaKelly. NEW CONSTITU- TION Alabama voters will decide whether to ratify the Alabama Constitu- tion of 2022 that removes racist language, such as references to segregated schools and an interracial marriage ban. It also re- organizes the document, which has been amended nearly 1,000 times, to remove repealed provi- sions and make it more user-friendly. However, it makes no changes to how government operates.

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS There are 10 proposed statewide constitutional amendments. Those in- clude Amendment would give judges more discretion to deny bail to people accused of violent crimes. Amendment 10 is a companion amendment to the ratification vote that would allow new amend- ments to be placed within the document. DAVID A. LIEB Associated Press More than one-quarter of state lawmakers whose seats are up for election across the U.S.

are guar- anteed tobegone fromofficenext year a statistic certain to grow when the votes are counted from theNovember general election. A combination of retirements, term limits, redistricting changes and primary defeats especially among Republicans facing con- servative challengers already has driven turnover in state capi- tols to its highest rate inmore than a decade. More incumbents will lose Tuesday, as voters decide nearly 6,300 state legislative races in 46 states. are going to be a lot of new faces in legislative chambers across the liams, principal for the elections and redistricting program at the NationalConferenceofStateLeg- islatures. The changing composition of state legislatures could have sig- implications for public policy.

Though the federal gov- ernment often garners more at- legislatureshold the power rules for future elections, raise or reduce various taxes and deter- mine what gets taught in public schools, among other things. This election is the since districtswere redrawn to account for population shifts notedby the 2020 census. Post-redistricting elections often see an uptick in retirements anddefeats as incum- bents opt against running in new areas or get matched up against each other. But this turnover rate already above is ahead of thepace fromthe last post-redis- tricting election in 2012 andmore than one-quarter higher than the average over the past decade, ac- cording to an Associated Press analysis of data from the election trackingorganizationBallotpedia. One reason is that a greater percentage of incumbents seek re-election this year.But that alone explain it.

While the rate of Democratic primary losses declined slightly from2012, the loss rate forRepub- lican incumbents rose from 4.7% a decade ago to 6.2% this year. Many of those GOP lawmakers lost to challengers aligned with former President Donald Trump and portray themselves as more conservative on such issues as election integrity, transgender policies and school instruction. Heading into the general elec- tion, Republicans heldmajorities in both legislative chambers in 30 states comparedwith 17 forDem- ocrats. Two states Minnesota legislative majorities.Nebraska’sLegislature is officially nonpartisan. When including governors, Republicans had full control in 23 states and Democrats in 14, with the others divided.

One more look at on the Alabama ballot KIM CHANDLER, ASSOCIATED PRESS a copy of the proposed constitution of alabama of 2022 is seen at the statehouse in montgomery on Tuesday. Vote will bring many new faces to state legislatures Register for classes at your local community college. Find your college at accs.edu/colleges GridironGladiators AHSAA SUPER 7 CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES NOVEMBER 30TH- DECEMBER 2ND SPONSORED BY ALDOTH Alabama VotesH GoogleH Hospital a ALABAMA HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION Contaminated water caused cancer and other serious health issues. Did you serve, live, work at Camp Lejeune, NC between 1953 and 1987? Youmay have a claim for damages. Call (256) 357-9211 SteveMorris Attorney at Law: representation is made that the quality of the legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other Camp Lejeune Toxic Water Claims.