The Beauty of Contested Primaries

From the Boyd for Governor campaign

January 15, 2026

In Alabama, a primary presents registered voters with an opportunity to choose who will represent their party in the November General Election. Every vote counts equally across the state. There is no possibility of gerrymandering. There is no involvement of an electoral college. Every vote cast goes directly toward the candidate of choice.

However, there are some who want to take away the voters' ability to choose. They even go so far as to ask qualified candidates to exit primary races.

There are those who believe clearing a party's field, or only having one candidate for any given office on the ballot, will allow a preferred candidate to receive all state and national money needed to compete in a General Election. At the same time, there is a presumption in Alabama that the candidate who raises the most money is the winner. If this is the presumption, what is the need for party primaries? At what point in our nation's history did money become the determination of a candidate's viability for state or federal office?

There are some who want uncontested races and coronations of the candidate they feel has the most name recognition. Since when did primaries become popularity contests? We would not choose a primary care physician or a mechanic based on popularity. There is not always a positive correlation between popularity and productivity.

There are some in Alabama who unashamedly argue that a person of color cannot win in Alabama. They do not even believe people of color should compete in races for certain constitutional offices such as governor or lieutenant governor. People of color cast more than fifty percent of the votes in Democratic primaries. How sad it is that people of color are needed to win Democratic primaries, but not regarded as good enough to compete in them-even after qualifying with the Party to run?

There are also some who believe there is no room in a primary for candidates who are willing to get into races, election cycle after election cycle, knowing odds are stacked against them. Such candidates are even called 'perennial candidates'. In the plant world, annuals spring up and have roots that do not go deep. They bloom. They die.

They never return. But perennial plants have deep roots.

They are resilient. Their ability to weather storms allows them to be prepared to face the next season. The rooting system of perennial plants also serves to hold the soil together.

Every race that a candidate runs helps that candidate's roots grow deeper. The more challenges a so-called perennial candidate faces, the more resilient she or he becomes. Winning or losing, each race presents such candidates with the opportunity to learn more about their future constituents.

There are some who believe primary fields need to be cleared. I argue the opposite.

Cleared fields do not always yield fields of change. Robust primaries should serve as opportunities for candidates to show they have what it takes to lead, and such primaries also present voters with more opportunities to see they have a choice.

Asking any candidate who qualifies with either Alabama state party to exit a race based on either of the aforementioned assumptions is wrong. It takes away the power of choice from voters.

The next time someone asks the candidate you are supporting-no matter the odds stacked against her or him-to exit the race, simply ask for polling to support their suggestion for your candidate to throw in the towel and capitulate to the will of a few people in smoke-filled backrooms.

Simply acting as if there has already been a coronation of any candidate before the qualifying period for a primary election has ended is wrong.

Pushing for uncontested primaries does not hurt candidates. It hurts the voters.

Dr. Will Boyd

2026 Candidate for Governor of Alabama

For more information, go to https://drwillboyd.com or follow Dr. Will Boyd/Boyd for Governor on social media.