Politics of Alabama

This work opens with a vivid portrait of Alabama’s 1892 gubernatorial race, a contest that shocked the South with its fierce competition between the entrenched Democratic establishment and the insurgent Kolb faction. The author recounts how the campaign ignited unprecedented public fervor, turning the state’s politics into a national spectacle and exposing deep divisions within the party.

Central to the narrative is Captain R. F. Kolb’s impassioned open letter, in which he denounces alleged ballot‑stuffing, corrupt returning officers, and a secretive party machine that, he claims, stole the election from the people. Through detailed recounting of conventions, factional battles, and the ensuing cries for a fair count, the book offers a window into the era’s struggle for honest government and the grassroots demand for a “free ballot and a fair count.” Listeners will gain a compelling glimpse of late‑19th‑century Southern politics and the enduring fight for electoral integrity.