MONTGOMERY – In today’s supercharged political environment, it is inspiring to see elected officials put past differences aside for the betterment of the state.
It is also especially rare to see true unity come from extremely competitive primaries, but Public Service Commission President Twinkle Andress Cavanaugh and state Rep. Will Ainsworth have proven to be a glowing exception.
After a hard-fought race to be Alabama’s next lieutenant governor, Cavanaugh and her husband welcomed Ainsworth to their home on Monday evening for a meet and greet for Ainsworth’s campaign. And this was no mere symbolic gesture. The place was packed, with the crowd pushing 200 and spilling into both the front and back yards at times.
These two conservatives are truly in lockstep, and their respective speeches reflected high-character and leadership from both.
Cavanaugh, in introducing Ainsworth to the overflow assembly from all over the River Region, expressed her utmost confidence in Ainsworth’s vision for the state, saying he was intent on moving “Alabama to its best and brightest days.” The former chair of the Alabama Republican Party talked about how important it was, after primaries, for formerly competing conservatives to come together and unite behind their shared ideals and goals.
She emphasized that she was looking forward to Ainsworth being elected as the state’s next lieutenant governor and urged the crowd to get out the vote for pro-jobs Republican candidates on November 6.
After the glowing introduction, Ainsworth thanked the Cavanaugh family for their hospitality and graciousness, noting that they had gone above and beyond in their support of him after the primary.
The state representative from Guntersville then echoed Cavanaugh’s words on the ultimate focus for leaders being on the greater good, not individual gain. He noted that he and Cavanaugh were both strong proponents of education, specifically Governor Kay Ivey’s “Strong Start, Strong Finish” initiative. Ainsworth also mentioned pro-growth economic policies as a shared goal that he and Cavanaugh would continue working on together, along with “the state’s leadership team,” moving forward.
While Cavanaugh and Ainsworth drew praise immediately for their respective conciliatory public statements on the primary runoff election night, the two have increasingly come together behind-the-scenes in the months since. They took a picture together at a rural broadband meeting held at the Alabama Farmers Federation home office weeks ago, after which Cavanaugh again rallied her supporters behind Ainsworth on social media.
However, this meet and greet event held at the Cavanaugh home is on a different level of party unison. Alabama Republican Party chair Terry Lathan, who attended the event in Montgomery, has praised Cavanaugh previously for helping bring the party together and continue advancing her conservative ideals, even after defeat at the ballot box. Now, people are simply blown away.
This latest step, far more than a gesture, had grassroots activists and politicos alike abuzz – even the most seasoned campaign consultants and elected officials in Montgomery could not remember a time when opponents in an uber-competetive primary had come together in such powerful fashion before the following general election.
In Montgomery this evening, @TwinkleforAL held a meet & greet at her home for @willainsworthAL.
Remarkable to see in today’s political environment, after an extremely competitive campaign. @ALGOP is stronger when candidates come together after primaries like this.#alpolitics pic.twitter.com/6oOkf6Slz9
— Sean Ross (@sean_yhn) October 16, 2018
Sean Ross is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
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