May. 28, 2025

Last week, an alligator exhibited concerning behavior in Huntsville. This week, another was in a traffic collision (see below).

First, an expected announcement from Tommy Tuberville happened Tuesday.

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U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville made his bid for governor official Tuesday, reports AL.com's Mike Cason.

He's expected to be an overwhelming favorite after reclaiming his Senate seat for the Republicans in 2018 and building a legacy as one of the most loyal Donald Trump allies over that time.

During Tuesday's announcement he said he'll still be working as a senator the next year and a half to work on Trump's agenda, starting with giving the Trump-backed spending measure known as the "big, beautiful bill" final passage.

And what about the governor's race?

Said Tuberville: “... meantime I’ll be running every weekend, doing things I need to do to make sure that I can get over the threshold and win this governor’s race, come back to Alabama, and work with President Trump.”

In politics, you stick with what works.

Tuberville also promised to bring more manufacturing to Alabama and to stop illegal immigration.

The issue of Tuberville's residency doesn't seem to be going away just yet.

Tuberville's announcement and the stepping aside of previously presumed candidate for governor Will Ainsworth seem to point toward Republican support for his candidacy.

The Democrats, however, almost immediately said they'd see him in court. Alabama Democratic Party Chairman Randy Kelley issued a statement claiming that Tuberville's primary residence is in Florida.

Tuberville's connection to Alabama is an Auburn house that his wife and son bought in 2017. It's valued at $271,000 while Tuberville owns a pair of beach homes in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida, with one valued at $5 million. He claims a homestead exemption on the Auburn house.

The state constitution says the governor, on the date of his or her election, must have been an Alabama resident for at least seven years.

Tuberville has been registered to vote in Alabama since March 2019.

Argued Kelley: “Claiming his son’s house as a homestead exemption while all travel receipts, voting, and living take place in Florida simply doesn’t cut it.”

Alabama Public Service Commission President Twinkle Cavanagh is leaving the PSC for a job in the Trump administration, reports AL.com's Margaret Kates.

The PSC exists to regulate utilities in Alabama.

Cavanagh's next job will be with the U.S. Department of Agriculture as the state director for rural development in Alabama.

Gov. Kay Ivey will appoint her replacement on the PSC.

There wasn't supposed to be severe weather in North Alabama on Tuesday.

Sometimes, the weather doesn't seem to care what it's supposed to do.

There were at least a couple of possible tornadoes Tuesday evening, including a probable twister that caused some damage on Redstone Arsenal.

Stormy weather is expected to continue in parts of Alabama through the workweek.

For today's "Alligators in Alabama" segment, we're featuring an 8-foot gator who died in a traffic collision.

AL.com's William Thornton reports that a driver struck the gator around 3:20 a.m. Monday in the Waugh area of Montgomery County. According to authorities, the driver had minor injuries and the vehicle had to be towed.

Just last week, we shared another story of a gator in Huntsville that was euthanized after exhibiting abnormal behavior around people.

$21,250

That's how much the local Business Storm Relief Fund is distributing to four Athens businesses recovering from a Dec. 18 tornado.

In 1916, writer Walker Percy of Birmingham.

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