Tuberville Defeats Jones in Alabama Governor Race, Leaves Lottery Vote to Legislature

Republican Tommy Tuberville defeated Democrat Doug Jones in Alabama's governor's race on November 3, 2026, in what local reporting called the closest statewide contest for the office since 2002. Unofficial returns early the next morning had Tuberville ahead 872,076 to 806,149 - a margin of roughly 3.9 percentage points - with the Associated Press calling the race for him shortly after midnight even as Jones declined to concede, citing an estimated 100,000 votes still uncounted in Jefferson County.

Gambling policy was an unusually live issue in the race. Jones campaigned on putting a standalone state lottery before voters, arguing Alabama is losing revenue to neighboring states where residents already buy tickets. Tuberville said in a late-October appearance on Alabama Public Television that he wouldn't stand in the way of a public vote, but wants the legislature and governor's office to agree on one complete plan - covering a lottery, casinos, and how each would be licensed and taxed - before anything reaches the ballot, work he's estimated could take about a year. His campaign also took $130,000 from VGW Luckyland, the sweepstakes-casino operator, during the race; we don't have an affiliate relationship with VGW or its Luckyland or Chumba Casino brands on this site.

Either approach faces the same hurdle: a constitutional amendment needs three-fifths support in both the Alabama House and Senate before voters ever see a ballot question, and three straight legislative sessions have ended without one passing - mostly over disagreements between the chambers rather than opposition from the governor's office. Alabama remains one of just five states with no lottery and has no legalized sports betting at all; lawmakers reconvene for their next regular session on February 2, 2027, when Tuberville's promised 'full package' approach gets its first real test.

We're tracking Alabama's governor's race here because the state is also home to more sweepstakes-casino lawsuits than any other, filed under a 19th-century gambling-loss recovery law we cover in our Alabama legal guide - and how the incoming administration handles the broader gambling question could shape where that enforcement goes next.