Staff Reports
In a dance of political maneuvers, the Alabama Senate recently waltzed through a vote on a bill with an eye on ensuring President Joe Biden's name graces the state's ballot come November. This move echoes the concessions made four years back for the then-incumbent, Donald Trump. The quandary of Biden's ballot berth has morphed into a hot potato for Alabama and Ohio alike, with Republican secretaries of state cautioning about certification deadlines looming before the Democratic National Convention kicks off on August 19. Alabama, boasting one of the nation's earliest candidate certification deadlines, poses a conundrum for whichever party happens to sport the later convention date that year.
Alabama lawmakers advance bill to ensure Biden is on the state’s ballothttps://t.co/ai6F2yUAiN pic.twitter.com/qMS1Sl6muY
— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) April 24, 2024
In a bid to untangle this electoral knot, the Alabama legislation aims to nudge the state's certification deadline from a solid 82 days before the general election to a snugger 74, in harmony with the Democratic nominating convention's calendar. The bill garnered a chorus of unanimous support in the Senate and now pirouettes its way to the state's House of Representatives for further scrutiny.
Democratic state Sen. Merika Coleman underscored that the legislation's essence is to ensure that "all Alabamians have an equal opportunity to throw their weight behind their preferred candidate." Meanwhile, Republican Senate President Pro Tem Greg Reed stepped up to applaud the bill post-vote.
History seems to be playing its greatest hits, as a similar melody wafted through the political airwaves in 2020 when then-President Trump grappled with Alabama ballot access. The Republican-dominated Alabama Legislature orchestrated a legislative pas de deux to tweak the certification deadline for the 2020 electoral tango.
The Biden camp has been pounding the drum for Alabama to embrace provisional certification, drawing on past electoral precedent. However, Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen has held fast to the stance that he lacks the authority to embrace provisional certification. An attorney representing the Biden camp penned a letter to Allen, underscoring persisting reservations about the GOP deadline despite legislative strides and emphasizing the pivotal role provisional certification played in securing Trump's spot on the 2020 ballot.
