Ralph Chapoco

Ralph Chapoco

[email protected]

Ralph Chapoco is a senior reporter for the Alabama Reflector. Prior to that, he was the political watchdog reporter for Florida Today, covering local politicians and the impact their policies have on the community. He began as an education reporter for a year and half for the Rio Grande Sun in New Mexico and the North Platte Telegraph in North Platte, Nebraska. Afterward, he spent more than three years at the Washington County Daily News as the local political journalist.

Alabama college, university counties shift toward Democrats in midterms
Alabama

Alabama college, university counties shift toward Democrats in midterms

Nov 12, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
Key points The shift toward the Democratic Party was dramatic in counties with colleges and universities. Democrats flipped Tuscaloosa County toward Doug Jones and gained ground in places like Lee and Pike counties. Local party leaders attributed the shift to...
Alabama Power says it will not charge customers for most advertising costs
Alabama

Alabama Power says it will not charge customers for most advertising costs

Nov 11, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
Alabama Power said this week it would stop charging customers for advertising costs except those related to public safety, following a request from the Alabama Public Service Commission, the state utility regulator. A state law passed in the spring will...
Independent candidate claims victory in tight Alabama Senate battle
Alabama

Independent candidate claims victory in tight Alabama Senate battle

Nov 10, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
An independent conservative candidate claimed victory Tuesday in a tight battle for a northeastern Alabama Senate district, but the Republican incumbent had not conceded as of early Tuesday evening. Independent candidate Jesse Battles said in a Facebook post that he...
Report: Alabama parole rates declined in fiscal year 2026
Alabama

Report: Alabama parole rates declined in fiscal year 2026

Nov 10, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
Alabama’s parole rates fell this year after rising in 2025, according to a report released last month. The ACLU of Alabama’s Parole Watch reported that the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles granted parole to about 19% of parole applicants...
Alabama executes Michael Shannon Taylor for the 1991 murder of a couple in Gadsden
Alabama

Alabama executes Michael Shannon Taylor for the 1991 murder of a couple in Gadsden

Nov 05, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
The state of Alabama executed Michael Shannon Taylor, 54, Thursday for the 1991 murders of Ivan and Lucille Moore in Gadsden. Taylor did not make a final statement. Taylor’s execution was the third in Alabama this year. Jeremy Tremaine Williams...
Straight-ticket ballots reach 70% of all Alabama votes; Democrats increase share
Alabama

Straight-ticket ballots reach 70% of all Alabama votes; Democrats increase share

Nov 05, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
More than 70% of Alabama voters cast straight-ticket party ballots on Tuesday, a record that also featured a higher percentage of those votes going to Democrats. The Secretary of State’s Office published a news release Thursday that said almost 1.2...
Alabama scheduled to execute death row inmate for 1991 murder of couple
Alabama

Alabama scheduled to execute death row inmate for 1991 murder of couple

Nov 05, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
Alabama is scheduled to execute a death row inmate Thursday for his role in the murders of a couple in Gadsden in 1991. Michael Shannon Taylor, 54, is set to be put to death by lethal injection for the deaths...
Republicans hold onto Alabama state offices, but by reduced margins
Alabama

Republicans hold on to Alabama state offices, but by reduced margins

Nov 04, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
Alabama Republicans won most statewide office contests Tuesday, though their margins were smaller than four years ago. Former Republican Party Chair John Wahl won the Lieutenant Governor’s race after he received 911,304 votes, about 54.3% of the electorate, according to...
Republican Katherine Robertson leads race for Alabama attorney general
Alabama

Republican Katherine Robertson wins race for Alabama attorney general

Nov 04, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
Katherine Robertson won the race for Alabama attorney general early Wednesday morning, becoming the first woman to hold the office in state history. As of 7:01 a.m., Robertson, chief counsel in the AG’s office, received 919,903 votes (54.9%) in unofficial...
Alabama voters go to polls with affordability and national issues on their minds
Alabama

Alabama voters go to polls with affordability and national issues on their minds

Nov 03, 2026
Anna Barrett Ralph Chapoco Ben Sessoms Forrest Terrell Andrea Tinker
Alabamians cast ballots throughout the morning in what could be one of the more critical midterms in recent memory. In more than 30 separate interviews in Jefferson, Montgomery, Autauga, DeKalb and Lee counties, voters choosing most frequently cited the economy...
Alabama Supreme Court upholds ruling keeping nonprofit out of PSC docket
Alabama

Alabama Supreme Court upholds ruling keeping nonprofit out of PSC docket

Nov 02, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
The Alabama Supreme Court Friday upheld a lower court ruling preventing a nonprofit organization from weighing in on how Alabama Power charges customers for fuel used to generate electricity. The court said that the Public Service Commission acted within its...
Three authors sue over Alabama library restrictions on transgender content
Alabama

Three authors sue over Alabama library restrictions on transgender content

Nov 02, 2026
Ralph Chapoco
Three authors and a free-speech organization Friday filed a federal civil lawsuit against the state board overseeing Alabama’s libraries, alleging a rule that limits minors’ access to books with transgender-related content violates the First Amendment. The plaintiffs argue the code...