Doug Jones concedes, celebrates Democratic victories across Alabama

Democrat Doug Jones conceded Alabama’s governor’s race Wednesday and congratulated Republican Tommy Tuberville. With all 67 counties fully reporting, Tuberville received 872,561 votes, or 51.8 percent, to Jones’ 806,253 votes, or 47.9 percent, according to APR’s unofficial election results.

Jones called it Alabama’s closest governor’s race since 2002 and said his campaign helped lay the groundwork for Democrats to compete in future elections. He pointed to Democratic gains in the Legislature, where the party flipped two seats in each chamber.

“I congratulate Tommy Tuberville on his victory, and I sincerely hope he will work to make life better for every Alabamian,” Jones said. “He deserves our support as he and his administration tackle the tough issues ahead.”

Here are his full comments:

As I told supporters last night, we began this campaign with both a goal and an objective in mind. The goal was to win the election, but the objective was to build a more competitive political environment in Alabama that would outlast the campaign. While we came up short in this election, we accomplished so much together that I believe will bode well for Alabama in the future. This was the closest governor’s race in Alabama since 2002. Louise and I are so grateful to the more than 800,000 Alabama voters who showed up to vote for change and to all of our supporters who made calls, knocked on doors, or simply talked to their friends, families, and neighbors about this election. We love you. And we thank you for being part of this incredible journey. But this campaign was never about me; it was always about giving the people of Alabama choices, fresh ideas, and hope for a better future. We brought new people into the political process and helped lay the groundwork for Democrats to compete in elections for years to come. And the results across Alabama give us a lot to celebrate.  Across all 67 counties, Democrats improved on past election performances. Congressman Shomari Figures won another term despite the Republican redistricting they thought would cost him his seat. Congresswoman Terri Sewell won reelection. In the Alabama State Senate, Jared Sluss and Rudolph Valentino Drake flipped seats. In the Alabama State House, Nell Brown and Allison Montgomery flipped seats. Local candidates across Alabama either won their races or finished stronger than expected.  Those are big wins. In districts that some people had written off as unwinnable, Alabama voters proved otherwise. I am proud of the candidates who won last night, every Democrat who put their name on the ballot this year, and everyone who worked so hard to elect them. But I am particularly so proud of our statewide candidates – Phil Ensler, Jeff McLaughlin, Wayne Rogers, Roz Houston, Violet Edwards, Ron Sparks, Sheila McNeil, James Gordon, AshLeigh Dunham – and all of our federal office candidates. Each one went into the campaign knowing the challenges but gave it their all to build something bigger than themselves. They are all true public servants, and I am grateful to each one of them. I congratulate Tommy Tuberville on his victory, and I sincerely hope he will work to make life better for every Alabamian. He deserves our support as he and his administration tackle the tough issues ahead. But the responsibility for Alabama's future doesn't rest with one person. It belongs to all of us. I encourage every Alabamian to stay involved, to hold our elected leaders accountable, and to make sure their voices are heard, not just on election day, but every day. We certainly have more work to do. But we have already begun to change Alabama. What we accomplished together gives me tremendous hope for Alabama’s future.

Doug Jones