Bailey Wood
Contributor
On Nov. 6, voters in the 2nd Congressional District can choose between the eight-year incumbent Republican congresswoman Martha Roby or Tabitha Isner, the newcomer to the scene of Alabama politics.
Isner is not the typical Democrat you’ll see portrayed on Fox News; she seeks solutions, not sides, and she’ll work with either party to get them.
She is an ordained minister and wife of a pastor. Isner is a foster-adoptive mom and an expert in the field of early childhood education.
These two candidates are vastly different, and only one should be hired to represent us.
As Martha Roby held fundraisers charging attendees $10,000 per plate outside the district she was chosen to represent, Isner was driving around the 2nd Congressional District making sure citizens were registered to vote and were well-informed on her positions as a candidate.
With Alabama being ranked in the bottom tier of states in all educational categories, it is shocking that there is radio silence on the issue from our current representative’s office.
Isner is not content with the state of our public education system, and as an early childhood education policy expert, she has been actively seeking solutions.
She is in favor of President Donald Trump’s infrastructure spending plan and also advocates that a portion of that money be allocated to the rebuilding of public schools to ensure children have a safe, comfortable place to learn.
This does not mean she will bow down to the president like Roby has, voting as she is told 97 percent of the time.
Roby has not held a town hall meeting in five years, and she has shown no sign of breaking her streak — she won’t even sit for interviews with the press.
Throughout the campaign season, Roby has been invited to speak at several open forums, town hall meetings and public debates but has rejected every single request so far.
Isner will not sit quietly on the sidelines as the administration’s restrictive trade policies constrict the agricultural and auto-manufacturing industries in our district. Martha Roby has allowed these trade policies to continue harming Alabamians without protest, and she has continued to turn her back on our failing education system. In a district like ours, in a state like ours, now is not the time to stick to the status quo.
Now is not the time to hold your nose and vote for the incumbent who has done little to help us. We deserve a representative who will represent us, not just special interests and the elites. Now is the time to look for solutions, not sides.
Martha Roby is counting on voters to blindly pull the lever, but Alabama deserves better than that.
Tabitha Isner is the better candidate and deserves your vote come Nov. 6.
