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Democratic gubernatorial nominee and former U.S. Sen. Doug Jones delivers a policy speech on July 27, 2026 in Birmingham, Alabama. Jones Monday outlined an ambitious policy agenda touching on healthcare, affordability and governmental reform. (Andi Rice for Alabama Reflector) Key points Democratic gubernatorial nominee Doug Jones said he would work for “three real opportunities” for Alabamians in health outcomes, government participation and economic prosperity. In an hourlong speech, Jones mixed traditional Alabama Democratic calls for Medicaid expansion and a lottery vote with new proposals like a demand for a data center moratorium, new investments in housing and child care and citizen ballot initiatives. If Jones were to win election, Jones would likely have to work with a Republican-controlled Legislature not inclined to advance his agenda. BIRMINGHAM — Democratic gubernatorial nominee Doug Jones unveiled an ambitious poli...

A mail ballot drop box is seen at a polling station on Nov. 4, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images) A federal appeals court over the weekend denied the Trump administration’s request to resume a controversial plan forcing significant restrictions on vote-by-mail. A three-judge panel of the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with  a lower court ruling last month that blocked President Donald Trump’s March 31 executive order restricting mail-in voting because the U.S. Constitution grants states — not the president — authority to administer elections. The executive order “directs unprecedented levels of involvement by federal officials in how states administer elections,” two appeals judges, Gustavo A. Gelpí and Julie Rikelman, wrote in  a Saturday order . Both were appointed by President Joe Biden. The panel’s third judge, Joshua D. Dunlap, concurred in part and dissented in part, noting that the Postal Service rule mandated by the executive order had...

The White House on June 11, 2026. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom) WASHINGTON — The Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee voted Friday that South Carolina should hold the party’s first primary in the 2028 presidential election cycle.  The recommendation came after a competitive 26-19-4 vote in South Carolina’s favor over Nevada and New Hampshire. The decision is now pending final confirmation from a full vote of the DNC next month.  If finalized, it will mark the second straight presidential primary cycle led by South Carolina, after the Palmetto State served as the first contest in 2024. The committee also voted to expand the maximum number of early primaries to six, up from the base of four — with one state representing each region of the DNC.  The committee voted in favor of New Hampshire, Michigan and Nevada to make up the other three early primaries that represent regions.  New Mexico , whose Feb. 15 primary is ahead of Michigan’s, and Virgin...

Democratic voters in Alabama's 6th Congressional District with choose from (left to right) Maurice Mercer, Ashtyn Kennedy, Jacob Bouma-Sims and Keith Pilkington for the party's nomination in a special primary election on Aug. 11. The winner will face the Republican nominee in November. (photos courtesy of candidates; graphic by Andrea Tinker/Alabama Reflector) Democratic voters in Alabama’s 6th Congressional District will choose between four candidates in the special primary election next month. Jacob Bouma-Sims, Ashtyn Kennedy, Maurice Mercer and Keith Pilkington are campaigning to represent the district, which covers central Alabama counties including Shelby, Autauga, Elmore and part of Jefferson. The winner of the Democratic primary will face either current U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer, R-Birmingham, or his Republican opponent Case Dixon in the November general election. The district leans Republican.  GET THE MORN...

The port city of Mobile, Ala., sits at the head of Mobile Bay and is a key link in shipping goods in and out of the U.S. (Lee Hedgepeth/Inside Climate News) This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News , a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. Sign up for their newsletter here . For decades, fishers, swimmers and environmental groups have complained that mud and silt from dredging operations in the Mobile Bay shipping channel have been smothering seagrasses, choking out oysters and clouding water that was once pristine. Now those groups are one step closer to getting the practice of “thin-layer placement” in the sensitive estuary banned by federal law. U.S. Rep. Shomari Figures, D-Mobile, says he has included an amendment in the Water Resources Development Act of 2026, or WRDA, that would ban the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from using thin-layer placement in most circumstances. ...

High school students unlock magnetic locking pouches containing their phones after class with a newly established a phone-free policy in 2024. After the success of cellphone bans nationwide, state lawmakers are turning to legislation restricting how much time students can look at screen. (Alixel Cabrera/Utah News Dispatch) After school cellphone bans passed many statehouses with bipartisan support in recent legislative sessions, state lawmakers are turning to legislation governing how long students should spend looking at screens. This year, four states passed laws restricting or regulating screen time for students from childcare through fifth grade. Iowa capped digital instruction at 60 minutes per day for students in kindergarten through fifth grade, with exceptions for special education, assessments and computer science.  Utah lawmakers this year directed the state education board to develop grade-specific technology rules, including restrictions on screen time in kindergarte...