🌅 Happy post-election Wednesday!

🌧️ Today's weather: Showers and thunderstorms, with a high of 75.

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Today’s newsletter is 870 words — a 3.5-minute read.

Republican Dale Strong has won a third term representing North Alabama's 5th Congressional District, the Associated Press projected Tuesday night.

Why it matters: Strong held his seat in a historically Republican district, running on his record in Washington and touting his district appropriations as Election Day approached. His victory came as changing demographics in the fifth district signaled a turn left.

Catch up quick: With no Republican opposition in the primary, Strong faced Democratic newcomer Andrew Sneed in the general election, winning with 53% of the vote, according to the AP.

Zoom in: Strong, a former Madison County Commission chairman, first won his seat in 2022.

• He spent the campaign emphasizing his work in business and investment in the district, especially around Redstone Arsenal and with U.S. Space Command's ongoing relocation.
• Strong repeatedly declined to debate Sneed or hold public town halls during the campaign.

By the numbers: The margin was 53% to 47% when the race was called Tuesday night, bucking the Cook Partisan Voting Index of R+15 for the district even as the earlier primaries showed Democratic voters picking up steam, especially in Madison County.

• Strong ran unopposed in 2024, and won more than 67% of the vote in 2022.
• The New York Times reports the 5th District moved 23 points toward Democrats compared with the margin of the 2024 presidential election.

The bottom line: See the full, unofficial results here.

Tommy Tuberville will be Alabama's next governor, the Associated Press projects.

Why it matters: Tuberville campaigned on supporting President Trump's agenda and bringing a Trump-like approach to state government, fending off a challenge from Democratic former Sen. Doug Jones.

Zoom in: Tuberville had secured 52.1% of the vote when the AP called the race at 12:36am Wednesday. The result was roughly along the same margin as recent polls rating the race as essentially a "toss-up."

• He campaigned on instituting a DOGE-like plan to Alabama government, bringing in the National Guard to fight crime and supporting economic development, including data centers.

What they're saying: "Tonight, Alabama decided to win," Tuberville said, claiming victory Tuesday night before any news outlet had called the race.

• "In the face of blue waves, which we've had tonight unfortunately, this staff has stood up to the pressure and said, 'not in my Alabama,'" he said, per WVTM.

Yes, but: Jones did not concede, telling supporters in Birmingham before the race was called, "Let's go to bed ... and say a prayer because it's not over," per AL.com.

Catch up quick: Former Auburn University head football coach and current U.S. senator Tuberville faced challenges to his residency during the campaign, along with pushback against his claim that North Alabama voters were influenced by communists and socialists.

• He also declined to debate Jones, telling Axios in August that "there's no reason to get up there and argue about differences of opinion."

🇪🇺 A delegation from the European Union visited Auburn University Applied Research Institute in Huntsville last week. (Auburn University)

• Europe is the U.S. defense industry's largest customer, per the EU, which has pledged to invest up to $1 trillion by 2030.

🎓 Tennessee Tech University is hosting a free dinner event for prospective Huntsville-area students at Stovehouse on Nov. 10, after it announced that local students can get in-state tuition rates at the school. (Tennessee Tech)

📈 A new report from Collier's is bullish on Huntsville's office market. (Huntsville Business Journal)

President Trump declared outer space open for exploration and development in a sudden election night proclamation.

Why it matters: The mostly symbolic edict doubles down on Trump's December 2025 mandate calling for Americans to return to the moon by 2028 and, eventually, land on Mars amid a heated space race with China.

What he's saying: Trump said all of outer space was "the province of all humans" and "open to exploration, development, use, and the establishment of a permanent presence by American citizens" in accordance with U.S. law and international agreements.

Between the lines: The statement is seemingly toeing the line of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which declares "the moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty."

• The proclamation also appears to be in line with the non-binding Artemis Accords which states "that the extraction of space resources does not inherently constitute national appropriation."

The big picture: China has reportedly set its sights on landing on the moon before 2030.

• NASA is planning for Artemis III's training missions next year with Artemis IV's crewed return to the lunar surface in 2028.
• Trump's proclamation calling for a lunar return by 2028 is "wildly optimistic," Victoria Samson, the Secure World Foundation's chief director of space security and stability, told Axios.
• White House spokespeople didn't immediately return requests for comment.

🧮 Derek is getting ready to dig into those numbers from yesterday!

Thanks to Crystal Hill for editing this newsletter.