Gov. Kay Ivey slowly made her way around the semi-circle of supporters Monday afternoon at the Auburn University Regional Airport as she greeted each of her supporters with a handshake.
Ivey took her time to make sure she spoke to each of them, many of which she knew from her time as an Auburn student. She wanted to make sure they all knew the importance of the primary race Tuesday.
“I hope you’ll vote for me,” Ivey said. “I’m not only an Auburn student but I am committed to helping these young people that are graduating from Auburn find a quality job with good pay right here in Alabama.”
Republican gubernatorial candidate Ivey visited Auburn Monday as the the fifth stop of six on her tour of Alabama.
Lee County community members lined a glass wall in the airport holding blue “Kay Ivey Governor” signs to make a background for Ivey to give a short speech in front of. But Ivey was sure not to miss a single person in the room and even greeted her sign-holding supporters.
Jimmy Rane, founder and CEO of Great Southern Wood Preserving Inc., accompanied Ivey on her tour to introduce her at each of her tour stops.
“Kay and I were in school here [in Auburn] together,” Rane said. “We’ve been dear friends all of these years and it’s a privilege to be a part of this historic campaign.”
Rane and Ivey attended Auburn University together. During their time at Auburn, Ivey was elected to several major Student Government Association positions and served as the first woman vice president of SGA.
“As we say in Abbeville, I know the blood of this lady,” Rane said. “She is a good, honest soul. Very intelligent. She has been devoted to public service all her life.”
As supporters cheered for Ranes and Ivey, Ivey made her way to the lectern to address her supporters.
“This campaign is all about showing up, that’s what we’re doing today is saying show up,” Ivey said.
Throughout her visit Ivey emphasized to her supporters that they need to come to the polls and vote in order to for her to keep working for Alabama.
“When I became governor of Alabama I told the people of Alabama that we would clean up government, we would restore the people’s trust and we would bring back our conservative values and we have done just that,” Ivey said.
Jobs and taxes were a point Ivey did not want her supporters to forget. She reminded attendees of the largest middle-class tax cut in the last decade which she signed into law in March.
“As governor I made it my job to make sure that everybody in Alabama had the opportunity for a good job with a larger paycheck,” Ivey said. “We have attracted some $6 billion dollars in the 14 months I’ve been in office. We’ve created some 13,000 new jobs. In fact, more people are working today in Alabama than ever before.”
Ivey also wants to continue to partner with President Donald Trump to fight for Alabama.
“I will keep on fighting for good paying jobs for our people,” Ivey said. “I will fight to ensure that our children get the education they need and deserve. I will certainly fight for our conservative values. Protect the unborn, defend life, protect the second amendment, protect our guns.”
Ivey is proud to be the strongest pro-life, pro-gun conservative in the Alabama Republican primary, she said.
There is still a lot of work to do and Ivey wants to finish the job she started 14 months ago.
“Above all else, I will not disappoint you,” Ivey said. “I will continue to fight to protect our relationship and our future. I look forward to continuing to serve with you.”
As Ivey finished her last words of her speech her supporters applauded and cheered. Ivey kept her speech short so she could go back to visiting with each of her supporters.
She mingled around the room and posed for photos with her supporters until it was time to take off for her final tour stop in Birmingham, Alabama.
The Alabama gubernatorial primary is Tuesday, June 5. Ivey is in the Republican primary with Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle, state Sen. Bill Hightower and evangelist Scott Dawson.
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