By SPEAKIN’ OUT NEWS
NORTH ALABAMA — Grocery bills, access to emergency care and the growing influence of artificial intelligence are among the issues shaping a three-candidate race for Alabama House District 7.
Republican Rep. Ernie Yarbrough of Trinity faces independents Trent Ford and Angelo Mancuso in the Nov. 3 general election. The district serves communities in Lawrence, Colbert and Morgan counties.
An Oct. 5 Alabama Reflector report describes it as the state’s only Alabama House contest with three qualified candidates.
Ford, a freelance software and website designer, told the Reflector that concerns about data centers and artificial intelligence helped motivate his candidacy. His priorities include eliminating the grocery tax, strengthening AI protections, and using nuclear and solar energy to address electricity costs.
Mancuso, a physician and former state representative, is emphasizing emergency medical care for Lawrence County, school improvements, grocery-tax elimination, and suspension of the gas tax, according to the report.
Yarbrough’s campaign website emphasizes lower taxes, education, gun rights, opposition to abortion and what he calls “medical freedom.” It also presents local decision-making as a central theme, arguing that authority and resources should rest closer to Alabama residents rather than state or federal political centers.
The candidates’ positions put household expenses alongside broader questions about technology, public services and government authority. The tax and energy proposals remain campaign priorities, not enacted changes resulting from this race.
Voters will choose their representative in Alabama’s statewide general election. The Secretary of State’s website provides 2026 sample ballots and voter information, allowing residents to check the contests applicable to their address before heading to the polls.