Kyle Sweetser is a Democrat in deep red Alabama, after voting for President Donald Trump in 2016 and 2020 before switching to former Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election.
The Trump-voter-turned-critic said he was pushed by the president’s tariffs to launch his bid to unseat Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) in 2026. It’s a steep task in a state that elected Trump by more than 30 points in the last election.
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Sweetser, who came into the public spotlight as a former Trump voter speaking at the 2024 Democratic National Convention, is starting his campaign by telling Alabama voters it’s OK to vote blue.
“We talk to people here, and some of them are afraid to vote Democrat, because they’re afraid they’ll be put on a list,” Sweetser told the Washington Examiner in a phone interview.
The Alabama Democrat said political rhetoric has made people afraid to vote blue, but he hopes to change that. Despite the state’s red leanings, it elected former Democratic Sen. Doug Jones in a 2017 special election. Jones benefited from running against the controversial Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore, who was accused of several instances of sexual misconduct and didn’t have Trump’s support until late in the cycle. He also benefited from Democrats’ long history of over-performing in off-year elections.
Jones was later defeated by Tuberville in the 2020 election, losing by about 20 points. Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) won her 2022 midterm election by a 35-point margin.
“We got to get more people leading by example, to stand up and start speaking out and say, ‘Hey, I’m a Democrat, it’s OK to be a Democrat.’ This is what I stand for,” Sweetser said.
Sweetser, who announced his bid in a campaign video on Tuesday, took his opening salvos at Tuberville, accusing him of living in Florida.
“You can’t expect somebody who lives in another state to care about our state like someone that lives in our state and cares about our state and wants their kids to stay in our state,” Sweetser said.
I'm Kyle Sweetser, and I'm running for the U.S. Senate
— Kyle Sweetser (@kyleforalabama) April 15, 2025
It's time to send Tommy Tuberville back to Florida and send someone to Washington who will actually fight for Alabama. pic.twitter.com/OKXn2N02fB
Tuberville has owned a 4,000 square-foot home in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida, for 20 years, which is longer than his wife has owned their 1,500 square-foot home in Auburn, Alabama, purchased in 2017.
Sweetser is also targeting Tuberville over his 2023 block of hundreds of military promotions and claims the incumbent senator is “not standing up for our state.”
Sweetser said Trump’s sweeping tariffs pushed him to run for Senate in 2026 and that he’s anticipating a decline in Alabama’s economy as a result. Mobile, where Sweetser is from, is a major shipping port for the state and has an economic impact of about $100 billion per year, he said.
He claimed that Airbus, Mercedes-Benz, Hyundai, and Toyota all manufacture in the state and “are under attack by the Republican Party.”
He cited the Jan. 6 Capitol riot as a reason why he no longer supported Trump, saying that the “Republican Party is no longer the party of law and order.”
Despite his opposition to Trump and leaving the Republican Party after the 2020 election, Sweetser backed Nikki Haley during the Republican presidential primary.
“It’s time to right the ship. Vote for Nikki Haley on Super Tuesday,” he said in a February 2024 post.
Sweetser explained, “Haley was a way to stop Trump,” and said that he crossed over to vote for her in the Republican primary.
He said he was a “Haley Voter, and a Republican” in a July 2024 video on his X account and that Trump’s decision to choose Vice President JD Vance “really, really solidifies my decision to vote against Trump.” Sweetser backed former President Joe Biden before switching to Harris.
I’m a Haley Voter, and a Republican…and I’m supporting Kamala Harris for President. @HaleyVte4Harris https://t.co/zpf0XnLEJz pic.twitter.com/q3gDeQxXyX
— Kyle Sweetser (@kyleforalabama) July 25, 2024
The Alabama Democrat did not mention any policy specifics but is running on an economic platform as a small business owner and said he will “defend people’s rights.” He said in his August 2024 DNC speech that he’s “not left-wing, period.”
Sweetser said he wants to change Alabama’s status as a “one-party state” belonging to Republicans.
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Sweetser has no prior political history and has never been elected to public office. The Cook Political Report lists Alabama as a “Solid Red” state for the 2026 Senate election.
The Washington Examiner contacted Tuberville for comment but did not receive a response.