| ALABAMA REFLECTOR
Sixty-five percent.
That is the percentage of votes that Donald Trump received in Alabama on Tuesday, November 5.
And that’s how democracy works. The person with the most ballots wins. Even if only one voter shows up.
But as we enter this man’s second term and prepare ourselves for what lies ahead, remember this number: 63%.
That’s Alabama’s share almost 4 million adults – 2.5 million people to be precise – who did not choose this. Either because they voted for Kamala Harris or a third party candidate, or because they didn’t vote.
Of course, only voters determine an election. There is no doubt about this outcome. There was never any doubt that Alabama would continue its 44-year streak of choosing Republican nominees.
But the outcome of an election affects everyone, even those who don’t fill out a ballot. If this administration implements the policies endorsed by its candidate and embraced by its advisers, it will be a very bad time — a pointlessly bad time — for many Alabamians.
The men and women around Trump are shooting for steep cuts to Medicaid. Medicaid is the foundation of Alabama’s health care system. It pays off for more than half of the births in our state. It keeps pediatricians’ offices open and the weak pulse of Alabama’s rural hospitals. Even if you don’t qualify for Medicaid – most Alabamians don’t — program cuts will make it harder to get the care you and your loved ones need.
What about education? The new administration withdraws the Alabama legislature.all I don’t like is DEI‘playbook and threatens to cut federal funding for schools that’inappropriate racial, sexual or political content” with children. Like in Alabamais the vague language intended to intimidate teachers. It discourages education that says American history is anything other than the reflected glory of a white man.
One other thing: Federal school funding in Alabama does not pay for Marxist cadres or any of the hot topics currently in the right-wing media. Money from Washington feeds poor children and helps them learn. That makes the ideological test even more diabolical. Teach what I want or the kids will get it.
Then there is the heinous plan to deport tens of millions of people in the United States who have no proof of their legal status. You must object to this violent and immoral plan because it is violent and immoral. Or because state-sanctioned violence never stops at its stated goals. Or because these types of programs cause horrible corruption.
But if that’s not enough, here’s a reminder that millions of workers are being deported will destroy the economythe alleged reason why Trump won. It will drive up food prices. Even the attempt will disrupt many industries and cause economic pain that we will be free from from now on.
I could go on: Trump’s proposed tariffs on imported goods will suck a lot more money out of your wallet – but you know what I mean. There is a lot of suffering coming, and a lot of it is coming here.
Consider this, though: 6 in 10 Alabamians disagreed. Some expressed their disapproval. More withheld their opinions. I’m not naive enough to think that they are all against Trump’s agenda. But they didn’t embrace it where their opinions matter most.
That’s important. The rest of the country needs to know that. In the coming years, people who share our distaste for the brutality and chaos will delve into a story about an Alabamian struggling. They breathe deep, knowing sighs and say, “That’s what they wanted.”
That’s what 37% of the state wanted.
And we must not forget that when the brutal campaign begins to force us to accept all this.
I know what the drift will be.
Real Americans know the answer is violence.
Only sick people teach children about the shortcomings of this country.
Well, you can complain about the closing of your doctor’s office, or you can drive your sick child hundreds of miles to the nearest one. Like a patriot.
This will be a daily challenge. We will navigate a deluge of propaganda and disinformation desperate to normalize a tide of smug and ruthless sadism. Desperate to be made to feel small and unable to turn the tide.
To make you feel like you’re alone.
But you’re not alone.
Millions of people across the country share your feelings. Hundreds of thousands of Alabamians have already refused to be part of it. Those numbers will likely grow.
Don’t feel like you have to do the hard work of defending democracy yourself. Even in our so-called backward state, there are football stadiums of people willing to join hands and brave the flood to protect basic rights and simple decency.
In moments of sadness, hold that fact tightly.
The future will be painful. There’s no guarantee we’ll get through it. What emerges next will be different, and not necessarily better.
But this is where the road back begins: knowing that none of us face it alone. None of us will be alone in demanding better.
Not even in Alabama.
Brian Lyman is the editor of Alabama Reflector. He has covered Alabama politics since 2006, working at the Montgomery Advertiser, the Press-Register and The Anniston Star. His work has won awards from the Associated Press Managing Editors, the Alabama Press Association, and the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Human Rights. He lives in Auburn with his wife Julie and their three children.
Alabama reflector is part of States Newsroom, an independent, nonprofit website covering politics and policy in state capitals across the country.