President Donald J. Trump's Power on Display

Alabama Republican voters sent a message that no consultant, no pollster, and no establishment insider can spin away. President Donald J. Trump remains the most powerful force in Republican politics, and nowhere was that more obvious than in Alabama's runoff elections.

In the Republican race for United States Senate, Barry Moore defeated Jared Hudson by a commanding margin. Moore had something every Republican candidate in America wants and very few can truly claim: the full confidence of President Trump. Alabama voters noticed. They responded. They delivered.

The same message came through loud and clear in the race for lieutenant governor. Wes Allen entered that race with a long political resume, a statewide office, years in elective politics, and a network of endorsements behind him. He was an established politician. He was well known having served as Secretary of State, State Representative and Pike County Probate Judge. He has built his career around election issues, and carried the advantages that usually matter in Alabama politics.

But John Wahl had the endorsement that mattered most.

Wahl has never held elected public office. He was the former Alabama Republican Party chairman, a grassroots conservative, and a new kind of statewide candidate. He ran directly to the voters, stood firmly with the America First movement, and carried President Trump's support into the closing stretch. When the votes were counted, Wahl defeated Allen decisively.

That result cannot be dismissed as luck. It cannot be explained away as low turnout or political noise. It was a clear demonstration that Alabama Republican voters are still looking to President Trump as the leader of the party and the movement.

The establishment has never fully understood this. They keep thinking Trump's influence is temporary. They keep hoping voters will move on. They keep believing that titles, resumes, and insider endorsements will eventually outweigh the trust Republican voters have placed in President Trump.

Alabama proved them wrong again.

President Trump's endorsement is powerful because Republican voters believe he fights for them. They remember who stood up to the media, the bureaucrats, the open-border crowd, the globalists, and the Washington insiders. They remember who gave voice to forgotten Americans. They remember who changed the Republican Party from a polite debating society into a movement that actually fights.

That is why his endorsement still matters. It is not just a political blessing. It is a signal to voters about who can be trusted to stand with the America First agenda when the pressure comes.

Barry Moore's victory showed it. John Wahl's victory confirmed it.

Alabama is Trump country. It has been Trump country from the beginning. And the voters just reminded everyone that the road to victory in the Republican Party still runs through the America First movement.

The message from Alabama could not be clearer: President Trump leads the Republican Party, Alabama voters know it, and candidates who stand with him are standing where the voters already are.

Perry O. Hooper Jr. is a former State Representative, a current member of the Republican State Executive Committee, the 2016 Trump Victory Chair, and a widely published columnist who writes on politics, legislative affairs, and current affairs.

Opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Alabama Gazette staff or publishers.