We Are Fortunate to Have Will Barfoot and Reed Ingram Fighting for Us

Guest Opinion by Perry Hooper Jr.

It is easy to complain about government, and too often those complaints are justified. But it is equally important to recognize good public servants when we have them. In our corner of Alabama, we are fortunate to have two legislators who know the community, understand the people they represent, and have earned positions of real influence in the Alabama Legislature: Senator Will Barfoot and Representative Reed Ingram. They bring experience, common sense, strong conservative values and, just as importantly, a willingness to actually do the work their constituents sent them to the State House to do.

Neither man is content to sit quietly in the back row waiting for somebody else. Senator Barfoot chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, while Representative Ingram chairs the House County and Municipal Government Committee. Those responsibilities reflect the confidence their colleagues have placed in them and give both men an important role in shaping legislation before it ever reaches a final vote. In the Legislature, much of the real work takes place before the television cameras are turned on, and having experienced legislators in positions where they can influence that process matters enormously to the people they represent.

Just as important, both men were deeply rooted in the communities they represent long before they entered the Legislature. Will Barfoot grew up in Pike Road, built his law practice here, raised his family here and has represented the area in the Senate since 2018. Reed Ingram has represented House District 75 since 2014 after a decade of service on the Montgomery County Commission. These are not politicians who discovered our community when they needed votes. They are products of it. Their families, businesses, friendships and records of public service were established here long before they held their current offices, and that connection matters when decisions made at the State House affect the people back home.

Public safety provides perhaps the clearest example of why their representation matters. Senator Barfoot sponsored legislation expanding the serious crimes for which judges may deny bail under Alabama law, continuing the effort to strengthen the protections created by Aniah’s Law. He has also been willing to press Montgomery officials over police staffing and the public-safety concerns he has heard repeatedly from residents. Whether City Hall likes the pressure or not should not be the test. When constituents are worried about crime, police manpower and whether their families feel safe, their senator should be willing to raise those concerns loudly and directly. Barfoot has shown that he is.

Reed Ingram has demonstrated the same willingness to take on problems that directly affect public safety. His 2026 legislation strengthening state oversight of 911 performance was enacted into law, creating a system to measure whether local communications districts are answering calls and dispatching emergency responders effectively and providing for audits and corrective action when serious deficiencies are found. When somebody calls 911, government has no more basic responsibility than making sure somebody answers and help is dispatched. That is not an abstract policy debate. It can literally be a matter of life and death, and Ingram went after the problem directly.

There is something else I appreciate about both men: they are willing to take heat. Leadership is not putting your finger in the air every morning to see which direction the political wind is blowing. Sometimes representing your constituents means irritating powerful people. Sometimes it means challenging local officials, confronting entrenched interests or carrying legislation that opponents will attack. Barfoot and Ingram have both demonstrated that they are willing to step into those fights instead of watching safely from the sidelines.

There is also something refreshing about legislators who understand that the job is bigger than generating headlines. Much of what matters most in state government involves the unglamorous work of solving problems: getting a road project moving, helping a local government navigate state requirements, improving emergency response, strengthening criminal laws, working with law enforcement, helping a constituent cut through bureaucracy or making sure a community has someone at the table when major decisions are being made. Those things may never lead the evening news, but they are often what people remember when they decide whether government is actually working for them.

Neither man deserves praise simply for holding office. Public office is a responsibility, not an entitlement, and every elected official should be judged by results. But when legislators know their communities, confront difficult issues directly, earn the respect of their colleagues, build enough influence to help shape legislation and are willing to stand their ground when controversy comes, their constituents should recognize what they have. Effective representation should never be taken for granted.

In Senator Will Barfoot and Representative Reed Ingram, we have two men who know where they come from, know the communities they represent and know who elected them to serve in the Legislature. They understand that holding office is not about having a title beside your name. It is about using that office to make a difference for the people who trusted you with it.

We are fortunate to have Will Barfoot in the Alabama Senate and Reed Ingram in the Alabama House. They have experience, influence, strong roots in our community and a demonstrated willingness to lead when leadership is required. At a time when good representation matters more than ever, the people of our area can be thankful that both of them are on the job.

Perry O. Hooper Jr. is a longtime Alabama Republican figure, former Alabama Legislator and Montgomery businessman. He served as Co-Chair of “Alabama Trump Victory” in 2016, and served as an at-large delegate to the Republican National Convention. He is a noted civic leader in Montgomery with deep family roots in Alabama’s legal and political history.

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