Good morning and Happy Star Wars Day! May the 4th be with you.  I say we celebrate with GIFs. Here’s your Daily News.

1. Poll: Supreme Court races are largely undecided.  

• It’s our final day of Alabama Daily News / Leverage Public Strategies survey results.
• I hate to end on kind of a dud, but the numbers for Chief Justice and the competitive Associate Justice races aren’t all that compelling.
• Read the full results HERE.
• Justice Tom Parker is leading over current Chief Justice Lyn Stuart, but not by much.
• In fact, one of my main takeaways from this poll is how I thought Parker would be doing a lot better than he is.
• It is possible that his association with Roy Moore now hurts as much as it used to help, but that’s pure speculation.

Thanks for playing

• THANK YOU for all the interest and feedback about the polling this week.
• Many have asked whether I will be polling the Democrats. The answer: hopefully. I’d like to survey the governor’s race at least. So, we’ll see.
• Also, it’s possible we could do some more in-depth polling closer to the election. So, stay tuned.

2. It’s all about the money, honey.

• Fundraising reports are in.
• That means we can now see how much candidates raised and spent in the month of April and how much they have going into the final month.
• With ONE MONTH to go until the Republican and Democratic Primaries on June 5, finances become very important.
• Voters are just now starting to tune in and you don’t want to be the campaign that runs out of money and has to take down your TV or radio ads.
• ALSO, some of these races are heading for a runoff. So, take that into consideration when looking at the cash on hand numbers.
• See the complete results HERE.

3. How one local school board race is threatening to become a statewide education affair.

• Local school board races rarely get much media attention beyond a handful of newspaper articles and maybe a shared story on the local television news.
• But now, a brewing inter-party fight and the messy, high stakes struggle over the state’s most troubled school system is threatening to turn one Montgomery school board contest into one of the state’s most watched races this cycle.
• Earlier this week, YellowHammer News reported that Perry Hooper, Jr. is sounding alarm bells within the Republican Party about Larry Lee, who has run for office several times as a Democrat but now is in the GOP Primary for Montgomery School Board.
• Now, Hooper is formally challenging Lee’s ballot access.
• Why is it a potential statewide issue? Hooper is also calling out Larry Lee’s association with an old GOP boogeyman: the Alabama Education Association.
• The teachers and education workers union has been kind of withdrawn politically over the last few years, mainly sticking to policy and personnel issues.
• But they have reemerged in a very public way in this Montgomery Public Schools debacle.
• That brings risks for the organization, and now, for Lee.
• Anyway, I wrote about it. You can read that HERE.

4. Tombigbee Co-Op grant means broadband expansion. 

• Tombigbee Communications has received a $3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to expand broadband internet access in rural northwest Alabama.
• U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, Gov. Kay Ivey and Congressman Robert Aderholt were on hand to announce the grant yesterday.
• Tombigbee Communications is a subsidiary of Tombigbee Electric Cooperative, which serves the power needs of many rural customers in that part of the state.
• The state’s electric co-ops supported the recent passage of a state law expanding access to broadband internet in rural areas through the use of grants.
• Secretary Perdue explained that access to broadband internet isn’t a luxury any more, but a necessity. Expanding access in rural areas can be a game changer for education and economic development, he said.
• Read more HERE.

5. News briefs. 

• AP’s Kim Chandler did a profile on Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott Dawson that is worth your time this morning. Read it HERE.
• The Montgomery Advertiser’s Brian Lyman continued his profile series with a look at Democratic candidate Sue Bell Cobb. Read that HERE.
• The Montgomery Board of Education has selected Ann Roy Moore as the new full time superintendent. This won’t be controversial at all, especially considering how the vote was taken and tallied. Read Andrew Yawn’s report in today’s Montgomery Advertiser.
• The other day, Roy Moore said he probably wouldn’t run for office again. That was NEWS, so it got reported far and wide, including in this space. Turns out he doesn’t want to close the door on that after all. So, Roy Moore might be running for governor or something else in the future. [Doug Jones thought bubble: please pick Senate, please pick Senate]. Read more HERE.

Headlines.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Poll: Supreme Court races are largely undecided.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Fundraising reports: major candidates.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – How one local school board race is becoming a statewide education affair.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS -Tombigbee gets $3 million grant to expand rural broadband.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Roy Moore cracks back open the door on running for governor.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Dawson stresses evangelist background, outsider status in race for governor.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS -Ivey widens fundraising lead in governor’s race.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS: Two sought in fatal shooting at Selma gas station.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Alabama officers investigating Jasper County inmate’s death.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Mnuchin: U.S. having ‘good conversations’ in China trade talks.  

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Missouri to hold session on impeaching governor.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – The Latest: Trump says payment to Daniels unrelated to campaign.

MONTGOMERY ADVERTISER – Flight plan: ‘Lessons learned’ could help Tuskegee land jet plant.

MONTGOMERY ADVERTISER – In gubernatorial race, Sue Bell Cobb stresses her judicial experience.

MONTGOMERY ADVERTISER – Contributor E-K. Daufin:  EJI memorial represents millions of victims — not just 4,000.

MONTGOMERY ADVERTISER – Contributors Leah Nelson and Shay Farley:  Policing for profit prevails at Alabama Legislature.

THE DOTHAN EAGLE – Local leaders present frank talk on city schools’ future. 

AL.COM – Gov. Kay Ivey dodges question about releasing health records.

AL.COM – Roy Moore cracks the door on running for office again.

AL.COM – Columnist Kyle Whitmire:  Thou shalt not pander.

AL.COM – Survey says Alabama GOP attorney general race tight; most undecided.

AL.COM – Alabama GOP governor’s race: With Ivey in lead, will ‘negative’ campaigning follow?

AL.COM – HudsonAlpha, UAB get $10 million grant for newborn genome sequencing.

AL.COM – Watchdog group files ethics complaint against Shelby; senator alleges claim politically motivated.

AL.COM – Family sues after 3-year-old drowns in grease pit in Auburn.

AL.COM – Contributor Jim Carnes:  Gov. Ivey should withdraw catch-22 Medicaid plan.

ALABAMA POLITICAL REPORTER – Maddox releases infrastructure plan, touts increased gas tax.

ALABAMA POLITICAL REPORTER – Columnist Joey Kennedy:  Roy Moore: Carrying sore loser to the extreme.

YELLOWHAMMER NEWS – Though Alabama has few DACA recipients, state joined legal challenge.

DECATUR DAILY – Nobel for Trump not as crazy as it seems.

ANNISTON STAR – FEMA staff helping Jacksonville residents apply for tornado damage aid.

ANNISTON STAR – Experts: Moore’s chances in defamation suit are slim.

ANNISTON STAR – Stormy’s saga.

WASHINGTON POST – Across the country, measures to arm teachers in schools stall.

NEW YORK TIMES – Their Ancestors Were on Opposite Sides of a Lynching. Now, They’re Friends.

NEW YORK TIMES – Giuliani May Have Exposed Trump to New Legal and Political Perils

NEW YORK TIMES – A Fast-Food Problem: Where Have All the Teenagers Gone?

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