Politics should be about electing leaders that solve problems not a team sport

We spend far too much time asking whether Alabama is red enough or blue enough.

We're asking the wrong question.

The question isn't whether our politics can win another election. The question is whether our politics can still solve problems.

Somewhere along the way, we confused politics with identity. We started treating our political parties like college football teams, where loyalty matters more than results and questioning your own side is considered betrayal.

That's not leadership.

The center of Alabama isn't Montgomery. It isn't the marble halls of the State Capitol. It isn't the Governor's Office. It isn't the Alabama Legislature. It isn't the Public Service Commission.

The center of Alabama is a single mom wondering how she's going to pay another power bill. It's a family trying to afford groceries after another trip to the store. It's a small business owner buried under rising costs. It's a young couple wondering if they'll ever be able to buy a home. It's a retiree trying to make a fixed income stretch just one more month.

Those people don't wake up every morning wondering who won yesterday's political argument.

They wake up wondering how they're going to make it through today.

When government forgets that, government has lost its purpose.

Too many Alabamians have also lost confidence in our institutions. They hear constant accusations of corruption, self-dealing, and political gamesmanship involving every level of state government-from the Legislature to the Public Service Commission to the Governor's office. Whether every accusation is justified or not, the erosion of public trust should concern every public servant.

Trust isn't restored through better slogans.

It's restored through better character.

We've also created a political culture where too many people treat elected office as a career instead of a calling. Public office was never meant to become someone's identity. Leadership should be measured by the lives you improve-not by how many decades you can remain in office.

And here's a truth neither party likes to hear.

The Republican Party has built an impressive electoral machine in Alabama, but long-term success can breed complacency if it stops listening to the people it serves.

The Democratic Party faces a different challenge. Unless it takes an honest look at why it struggles to compete statewide and broadens its appeal, it will continue to have difficulty earning the trust of many Alabama voters.

Both parties need humility.

Both parties need self-examination.

Both parties need to remember that the goal isn't to defeat each other. The goal is to serve the people who elected them.

Politics isn't supposed to be a country club for insiders. It isn't supposed to be an endless campaign. It isn't supposed to reward the loudest voices while ignoring the quiet struggles of ordinary families.

It should be about solving problems.

If we're serious about loving Alabama, then we have to love our neighbors more than we love our political tribes. We have to care more about truth than talking points, more about service than status, and more about the next generation than the next election.

The future of Alabama won't be decided by whichever party can shout the loudest.

It will be decided by whether we have the courage to remember that government exists for one reason:

To serve the people-not itself.

Robert McCollum is a businessman in Tallapoosa County. He has run for state and local office as a Republican.

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