After a close race, Auburn City Council member Jay Hovey has officially won the race against incumbent Tom Whatley for the Republican Primaries for State Senator of District 27, which encompasses parts of Lee, Russell and Tallapoosa counties.
Whatley and Hovey, both Republicans, were the only two candidates running for the seat in the primaries.
Last Tuesday, Hovey was winning by four votes — 8,867 to Whatley's 8,863, but provisional ballots hadn't been assessed yet. Provisional votes are cast when voters aren't on the voter list or don't have their required identification at the time.
Those votes have to be reviewed after voting ends to determine if they count and can be deemed invalid by the registrars if the voters are Democratic or live outside District 27.
After canvassing boards in all three counties counted the provisional votes, Hovey pulled ahead with one vote.
The state Republican party will certify the vote, and Whatley will have 24 hours to file a challenge.
Whatley is a lawyer who was seeking his fourth term in the seat, having served in the position since 2010. During his time, he served on committees that included Alabama agriculture, finance, healthcare, transportation and banking. He also served as the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Hovey served as the Ward 7 Council member for Auburn City Council for four years and is a mortgage loan originator for AuburnBank. He's also been involved in the community in other ways, like with the Auburn Chamber of Commerce, the Alabama Small Business Advisory Commission, United Way of Lee Court, Kiwanis club and the City of Auburn Greenspace Advisory Board.
While serving on the City Council, Hovey worked with Mayor Ron Anders to serve the community.
"I'm proud of Jay," Anders said. "Jay is a hard worker, he's exhibited that on the council as well. Jay's life has been a story of a hard work and persistence, starting as a firefighter for the City of Auburn and where he is today with the AuburnBank. I'm not surprised by his success because of the effort he puts into everything he does. On top of that he's a great guy and he's great to work with, I'll miss him."
Hovey's opponent, Whatley, has served as Alabama state senator for over a decade.
"I appreciate everything senator Whatley has done for the city of Auburn, he's been a loyal senator for 12 years and I'm grateful for what he's done the that time," Anders said.
During Hovey's campaign, he ran on the slogan "character counts” and said he would uphold the values of the people that make District 27 great, according to his website.
"I’m going to fight for our children, born and unborn, and their right to a quality education," Hovey said. "I’m going to protect our 2nd Amendment rights. I’m going to fight against government overreach at all levels."
Hovey will run against Democrat Sherri Reese in the general elections.
New terms for all seats in the senate will begin in November.
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Destini Ambus, senior in journalism, pursuing a minor in sociology is the editor-in-chief of The Auburn Plainsman.
My Ly, junior in journalism, is the news editor of The Plainsman.
