The Alabama State Constitution provides extensive analysis on American's longest state constitution, with an emphasis on the impact of recent court decisions declaring several of its most recently adopted provisions as in conflict with the U.S. Constitution and thus invalid. Since entering the Union in 1819, Alabama has had six constitutions. While the original constitution was regarded as one of the most progressive in the nation, its current constitution, adopted in 1901, is one of the most restrictive, especially from the perspective of the limits it imposes on local governments. The second edition updates and expands the previous edition, providing new analysis, with citations to court decisions and relevant scholarly commentary. This edition provides important accompanying explanations on newly added provisions including gay marriage, immigration, environmental protection, energy, and taxation and the court decisions interpreting them. The Oxford Commentaries on the State Constitutions of the United States is an important series that reflects a renewed international interest in constitutional history and provides expert insight into each of the 50 state constitutions. Each volume in this innovative series contains a historical overview of the state's constitutional development, a section-by-section analysis of its current constitution, and a comprehensive guide to further research. Under the expert editorship of Professor G. Alan Tarr, Director of the Center on State Constitutional Studies at Rutgers University, this series provides essential reference tools for understanding state constitutional law. Books in the series can be purchased individually or as part of a complete set, giving readers unmatched access to these important political documents.

For most of the nation, Alabama government is emblemized by Governor George Wallace blocking the entry to the University of Alabama, defying court-ordered integration and championing states'-rights slogans. But Wallace's return to power in the 1980s witnessed sweeping social and political changes in Alabama. Today the state for the most part enjoys the aura of "the new South." James D. Thomas and William H. Stewart, both natives of Alabama, bring a detailed sense of its colorful past to their forward-looking book about its government and political institutions.

In the course of writing about Alabama's legislative, administrative, and judiciary branches; its local politics; and its historic relations with the federal government, Thomas and Stewart reveal much about life today in this southern state. Low taxes, industrialization and urbanization, the civil rights movement, and a trend toward two-party politics have helped to usher in dramatic changes. Although continued change is in the wind, the authors do not think that Alabama's political institutions will soon lose their distinctive Alabama character, and no book has ever described that better than "Alabama Government and Politics,"

An expansive and accessible primer on Alabama state politics, past and present, which provides an in-depth appreciation and understanding of the twenty-second state's distinctive political machinery Why does Alabama rank so low on many of the indicators of quality of life? Why did some of the most dramatic developments in the civil rights revolution of the 1960s take place in Alabama? Why is it that a few interest groups seem to have the most political power in Alabama? William H. Stewart's Alabama Politics in the Twenty-First Century explores these questions and more, illuminating many of the often misunderstood details of contemporary Alabama politics in this cohesive and comprehensive publication. The Alabama state government, especially as a specimen of Deep South politics, is a topic of frequent discussion by its general public-second only to college football. However, there remains a surprising lack of literature focusing on the workings of the state's bureaucracy in an extensive and systematic way. Bearing in mind the Yellowhammer State's long and rich political history, Stewart concentrates on Alabama's statecraft from the first decade of the twenty-first century through the November 2010 elections and considers what the widespread Republican victories mean for their constituents. He also studies several different themes prominent during the 2010 elections, including the growing number and influence of special interest groups, the respective polarization of whites and blacks into the Republican and Democratic parties, and the increasingly unwieldy state constitution. This fascinating and revealing text provides a wealth of information about an extremely complex state government. Featuring detailed descriptions of important concepts and events presented in a thorough and intelligible manner, Alabama Politics in the Twenty-First Century is perfect for scholars, students, everyday Alabamians, or anyone who wants the inside scoop on the subtle inner workings of the Cotton State's politics.