WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Republican U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville said on Tuesday he will run for governor of Alabama next year, ending weeks of speculation about his political plans for the 2026 elections.

“I will be the future governor of the great state of Alabama,” Tuberville, 70, said on Fox News.

A former college football coach best known for his time at Alabama’s Auburn University, Tuberville was elected to the Senate in 2020 as a close ally of President Donald Trump.

Tuberville launched a “Coach for Governor” website featuring photos of him shaking hands with Trump and flanked by U.S. military officers. The website touts his 2020 election to the Senate as part of Trump’s America First movement.

He pledged to boost manufacturing, improve education and stop illegal immigration if elected to replace Republican Governor Kay Ivey, who reached the state’s two-term limit for the office.

Tuberville’s decision will not likely change the balance of power in the Senate, which Republicans currently control by a 53-47 margin. Political analysts view the seat as likely beyond the reach of Democrats, though Democrat Doug Jones managed to win a Senate seat in 2017, when he won a special election.

—

(Reporting by David Morgan; editing by Andy Sullivan and Rod Nickel)