Doug Jones' Crowded Table Keeps Getting Bigger as More Than 600 Attend Huntsville Town Hall

HUNTSVILLE, AL – Doug Jones has campaigned on building a crowded table where everyone has a seat. Wednesday night in Huntsville, that table got a little bigger as more than 600 people packed Campus 805 for the largest stop yet on Jones' Town Hall Tour. Jones was joined by Madison County Commissioner Violet Edwards, the Democratic nominee for state auditor and a member of Jones's "Ticket for Change."

With Huntsville experiencing rapid growth, many of the evening's questions focused on the challenges that come with it, including healthcare, housing, infrastructure, and the role of local government.

Healthcare generated some of the night's strongest discussion as Jones reiterated his commitment to expanding Medicaid immediately upon taking office, arguing that Alabama's refusal to expand coverage is about politics, not policy.

"I'm telling you guys, on Day One, I'm going to start doing everything I can to expand Medicaid," Jones said. "We've not had a champion in the governor's office. You're going to have that now."

Jones also discussed the pressures rapid growth has placed on Huntsville and Madison County, saying local leaders need more authority to respond to the needs of their own communities instead of waiting on Montgomery.

"We need to give Huntsville and Madison County a little more power to do things on their own," Jones said, "without having to come to the overlords in Montgomery."

Throughout the evening, Jones emphasized that the campaign's town halls are about listening to Alabamians and having honest conversations about the issues affecting their daily lives.

"I truly believe that all politics is personal," Jones said. "People want to know, ‘How is this going to affect me?’"

The Huntsville event marked the fourth stop on Jones's statewide Town Hall Tour and the largest crowd to date, following earlier town halls in Greene County, Sheffield, and Dothan.

The next Town Hall with Doug Jones will take place in Shelby County on Tuesday, August 4. Additional information is available at mobilize.us/dougforalabama.

The livestream of the Huntsville Town Hall is HERE. 

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