Tomorrow is the day we have been planning and working for since the election of 2012. It’s Election Day! Don’t miss your chance to cast your ballot and help decide the future of Alabama. We need for you to make sure your friends and family cast their votes too. We cannot take our Republican majority for granted. Each and every Alabama Republican must cast their ballot tomorrow to keep Alabama on the right track.
This election will be the first introduction of Alabama’s voter photo ID law to many citizens. The Secretary of State’s office has done a fantastic job spreading the word on the new law and providing ample opportunities for those without photo IDs to obtain one for free. For those few citizens without valid IDs, it is not too late! You can still obtain an ID even on Election Day. Voting is the right of every legal citizen who is registered to vote and no one is going to deprive them of voting, if they can identify themselves.
The Alabama Republican Party has increased its efforts to prevent voter fraud this year. We established a Director of Voter Engagement to implement a detailed ballot security plan, train poll watchers, spread awareness of fraud concerns and encourage citizens to take action when they witness fraud. We established a voter fraud hotline number and are placing signs at polling locations across the state to encourage citizens to keep an eye out for anything that looks like fraud and report it by calling 844-AL-FRAUD.
Many Democrats have continuously shown their determination to undermine the election process.Rev. Al Sharpton recently came to Alabama to accuse us of trying to “suppress” the minority vote by requiring a ID card to vote. The only votes we are trying to suppress are the fraudulent votes, and Sharpton knows this. Sharpton is trying to create a divide between the races in order to motivate African-Americans to go to the polls and vote for the Democrat candidates. And, they are using despicable tactics to do this. The Washington Times yesterday reported that in Alabama “fliers [are being] distributed in largely black communities [to] warn voters to cast ballots or else land may be given to extremist groups to honor klansmen.”
Now comes a liberal out-of-state group called the Southern Progress Action Fund who purchased hundreds of thousands of dollars in TV commercials and direct mail to mislead voters about our Republican candidates. This Arkansas-based group claims they are running the ads to stop voter suppression. In reality, Southern Progress has done nothing but air outrageous, offensive and false ads against Alabama Republican legislative candidates.
As ALGOP reported last week, Southern Progress Action Fund is led by the same fundraisers and associates that worked in the presidential campaigns of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. One of the founders of this group is none other than ultra-liberal former Vermont Governor and National Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean. Their ultimate goal is to retake the legislatures in southern states, like Alabama, so they can be in control when legislatures redraw legislative and congressional district lines.
I’ve got news for Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Howard Dean and Al Sharpton. Alabama voters are not buying what they are selling. And, they are going to turn away from Democrat candidates on the ballot Tuesday, because President Obama made it clear last week when he said, “I’m not on the ballot this fall but make no mistake, these polities are on the ballot. Every single one of them.” I guess this gives new meaning to “you can run, but you can’t hide”.
Thankfully, voters have a chance to make a difference tomorrow. To stand up against these cloak-and-dagger organizations determined to reverse the progress our state has seen under a Republican majority. Obama said it himself, “This is the last election where what happens will have an impact on my presidency.” Don’t let tomorrow pass without letting your voice be heard.
By Bill Armistead, Chairman of the Alabama Republican Party
