Wes Allen reflects on 2024 and looks ahead to 2026

Editor’s Note: Four hours after this story was published, Secretary of State Wes Allen formally announced his campaign for Lt. Governor of Alabama in 2026. It has been slightly revised to include the latest information while preserving its original perspective.

In an era of increasing distrust in American elections, Alabama has essentially become the gold standard for election integrity advocates, thanks largely to Secretary of State Wes Allen, who serves as Alabama’s chief election officer.

Months before the 2024 election, The Heritage Foundation, the conservative think-tank reviled by Democrats for its Project 2025 playbook for right-wing governance, ranked Alabama second out of 50 states, plus Washington, D.C., in election integrity – tied with Florida and Georgia and just behind Tennessee.

One pivotal policy that helped secure this spot on the Heritage scorecard came during the 2024 legislative session in the form of Sen. Garlan Gudger’s (R-Cullman) Senate Bill 1, which effectively banned ballot harvesting in Alabama. Secretary Allen and Governor Kay Ivey strongly advocated for the bill’s passage, and Ivey signed it into law on March 20.

Despite high praise from conservatives, Alabama’s strict election laws have been blamed for low voter turnout. In November, only 58.5% of registered voters in the state cast a ballot, the lowest percentage since 1988. Critics say the lack of early voting opportunities for Alabamians is responsible for this.

Asked for his response, Secretary Allen told Yellowhammer News, “In Alabama, we have Election Day, not election month, and there’s a reason that people are so confident in our electoral process in Alabama…Number one, we’ve passed legislation that requires that we always have paper ballots; we passed legislation that requires our tabulators not to have the ability to connect to the internet; we passed legislation that requires photo identification…Those are things that keep our process strong.”

“I view my role as Secretary as someone who interfaces and works alongside all of our elections officials at the local level, meaning probate judges, circuit clerks, sheriffs, and Boards of Registrars. Working with them is of utmost importance. It is up to the candidates to excite the public to go vote, and it is our job in the Secretary’s office to make sure that we have transparent, accountable, fair elections.”

Allen has taken a noticeably more hardline approach to early voting than his predecessor, former Secretary John Merrill, who, after the 2024 election, told AL[dot]com’s Roy S. Johnson that it could “be time for the legislature to explore an early in-person voting pilot that you would have in certain locations around the state.”

Asked if he would like to see the Alabama Legislature take any further action on election security during the 2024 legislative session, Allen took aim at Democratic legislators, saying, “There have been a lot of things out there that would weaken our elections process that have been introduced by the Democratic Party. All of the early voting, automatic voter registration, same-day voter registration, no-excuse absentee voting — all of those things we are going to oppose in this legislative session.”

In 2021, during his tenure as Alabama’s 53rd Secretary of State, Merrill initially supported a bill proposed by Rep. Laura Hall (D-Huntsville) that would have allowed no-excuse absentee voting in the state, before backtracking that support. Alabama currently allows voters who meet one of nine excuses to cast absentee ballots prior to Election Day.

In September, the tight ship Allen runs as Secretary of State led to the Biden Administration’s Department of Justice (DOJ) filing suit against him and the State of Alabama after he instructed Boards of Registrars to remove ineligible non-citizens from Alabama’s voter rolls. The lawsuit claims that the removal of names violated the Quiet Period Provision of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 which bars such actions within a 90-day period before a federal election.

Although he could not comment on specifics related to the litigation, Secretary Allen is confident, saying, “We feel like we have a strong set of facts and a strong case to make in that federal lawsuit, so we’ll see how that progresses.”

It should be noted that the Trump DOJ under Attorney General Pam Bondi has the authority to drop the suit.

While Allen has been a crusader for election security, he says that his office is committed to transparency and making voters aware of their rights at the polls.

Asked about his efforts to educate voters on Alabama’s election laws, Allen said, “We’ve put out press releases on our processes; I’ve spoken at numerous public events; we’ve talked to other elected officials; we’ve communicated through social media; so, we’ve used a lot of different avenues to get the word out.”

“If anybody has any questions, we’ve got a great elections team in our office, and we’ll answer the phone, take questions, call people back, respond to emails. We want to make sure we’re as open and transparent as possible.”

Allen’s father, State Sen. Gerald Allen (R-Tuscaloosa) was first elected to the Alabama House of Representatives in 1994 and won his seat in the Upper Chamber in 2010. When Senator Allen’s son, Wes, was appointed to serve as a probate judge of Pike County in 2009 by then-Governor Bob Riley, politics became a family business. Allen went on to win a full six-year term as probate judge in 2012 and mounted a successful bid for State House District 89 in 2018. Upon his swearing-in, Gerald and Wes Allen became the only father and son to serve together in the Alabama Legislature in its history.

Asked if holding political office was always an ambition of his, Allen says, “It wasn’t something that crossed my mind when I was younger. Dad has obviously been involved in the political process for a very long time, and I’ve watched him in his career in public service, and that was an inspiration.”

After being appointed to serve as a probate judge, Allen’s public service has largely come naturally.

“I saw the opportunity to serve in a little larger capacity and use that local experience as a probate judge to help people solve problems, be a conduit to a lot of different agencies, and take our values from the courthouse, then from the statehouse, and now apply them in the State Capitol each and every day,” Allen said.

“I’m just so proud to be in this role. It’s an honor and something that I do not take lightly at all.”

Although Allen now outranks his father, he says that they share a close bond, and he often takes advice from the senator.

Looking ahead to the 2026 elections that will leave every state constitutional office and every seat in the Alabama Legislature up for grabs, Allen has spent the last several months choosing whether to seek a second term as Secretary of State — or as widely speculated — run for Lt. Governor.

On Tuesday, he made that decision official.

“The Lt. Governor seat will be an open seat in the 2026 election and I believe it is time for me to take my record of conservative, effective leadership to that office,” Allen said in a statement to news outlets on Tuesday.

In his official campaign announcement, Secretary Allen affirmed many of the accomplishments he reflected on — with some added urgency.

“The past four years have been difficult for the American people as we have seen our economy tank, our borders overrun by illegals and prices skyrocket,” Allen said in a statement. “Now, we see things turning around because of President Trump’s common sense leadership.

“Now more than ever, we need conservative leaders in elected office that can be effective on the state level to counter liberal policies. My track record is crystal clear and I will stand up against any efforts to impose a liberal agenda on our society, our children and our businesses. I’ve done so by leading the way on conservative legislation and eliminating red tape and wasteful spending, saving Alabama taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars,” he said.

“That is what I will continue to do as Lt. Governor.”

Having announced his bid for the state’s second-highest office, Allen previously told Yellowhammer News that his family will play a big role in his political future, which is now well underway.

“When a person chooses to run for public office and to serve the public, that’s a family decision,” he said. Speaking of his wife, Cae, of 25 years, Allen says that she has been his biggest supporter.

“She’s been right there beside me, and I can’t imagine this walk without her.”

The couple has raised two college-aged children, Davis and Dee, and, asked if he sees politics in the future for a third generation of Allens, the Secretary said, “If they feel called to serve their communities at a local level or statewide, I think they would be very good at it. They’re great kids, they work hard, and I’m very, very proud of them.”

Riley McArdle is a contributor for Yellowhammer News. He is a Junior majoring in Political Science at the University of Alabama and currently serves as Vice Chairman of the College Republican Federation of Alabama. You can follow him on X @rileykmcardle.