Spend a few minutes talking with Kenneth Paschal, and it quickly becomes evident that the man loves his home state of Alabama.

When it was time for Paschal to conclude his 21 years of service in the U.S. Army, there was no doubt he wanted to return to his native state.

“Alabama has so much potential,” he explained in a recent conversation with Yellowhammer News. “People want to come to Alabama, and people want to come to our country. These divisive issues saying that we are in the worst of times are not true.”

He estimates that he traveled to more than half of the states in the union during his career in the military, and he spent a year stationed in South Korea.

Those experiences helped him more easily recognize what it was that drew him home.

“Alabama is one of the best places to live when it comes to the people,” Paschal remarked. “I love Alabama because it is one of the best places to raise a family. What I love about it is that my family is here, and it is a good place to live. The cost of living is good compared to other states. In Shelby County, we have good school systems, and our population increases year after year.”

On Tuesday, Paschal faces off against Democrat Sheridan Black in a special election to represent House District 73 in the Alabama Legislature.

House District 73 is located in Shelby County and is a reliably Republican seat. However, Paschal has not slowed his march in the lead-up to the election.

“Hopefully, we’ll get through this thing on July 13 and get the most votes and go to work in Montgomery,” he stated. “We cannot take anything for granted even though this is a red seat, and we’re feeling pretty good but we want to make sure that we let the voters know that we are working until the mission is complete.”

Should Paschal complete his mission, it will be one for the Alabama history books.

Potentially becoming the first black Republican elected to the Alabama Legislature is something that has taken a bit of time to sink in, according to Paschal.

“That’s not the reason why I am running but when that was brought to my attention, I had to sit and reflect and I thought, ‘Wow, this would be pretty major,’” he shared.

Running for office was never originally part of his plans.

“It was not on my bucket list,” Paschal explained.

Instead, he has spent the previous 10 years volunteering for pro-family causes “to restore the concept of family.”

After prayer and consultation with leaders at his church, Paschal decided to hold himself out for public office.

He views his experience in the military and working on behalf of pro-family groups as equipping him for that call.

Although nothing prepared him quite like his upbringing.

Born in Tuskegee, Paschal grew up Eclectic where he says his parents instilled in him a proper work ethic, while time spent on his grandparents’ farm helped to strengthen those life skills.

“I grew up knowing work is good for you and getting up early is good for you,” he stated.

Now Paschal is about to encounter a landmark election, one for which he has developed a great appreciation.

“I think it’s special because hopefully other minorities that have conservative values, hopefully, they will embrace this election,” he offered. “Hopefully, it will encourage them to become more actively involved and not be a closet conservative.”

He continued, “With the current posture of our country, I think it is perfect timing, too. The Lord has prepped me to deal with the turbulence, and hopefully, I can break that barrier. It should not be about color, but you do want to have diversity on both sides of the aisle. People shouldn’t be given a position, especially an elected position, because of the color of their skin. At the same time, we do need diversity within the Republican Party.”

After months of campaigning, Paschal continues to be encouraged by the reception he has received around the district.

“It means a lot because people have embraced me,” he outlined. “I don’t think because of the color of my skin but because of what I stand for going back to God and country. It has resonated with people. First and foremost, what is significant to me is that people have supported me and are voting for me because of what I stand for as a human being, which is God and country.”

Some interactions with voters have been noteworthy to Paschal and have reinforced his belief that people generally want many of the same things in life.

Paschal recalled one conversation he had while campaigning. His conversation was with a man who told Paschal that he could not be a Republican because he was black.

Paschal replied by asking him about the things that were important in his life.

“My question to him was, ‘Is it correct for me to say that you want to wake up in the morning, you want to wake up in a safe community, you want to go to work and when you leave work you want to come to your family and when you go inside you want to close the door and be left alone?’” Paschal said. “He said, ‘Yes, that is correct.’ What I shared with him, I said, ‘Those are the same conservative values that I have.’”

The key, according to Paschal, was in the way the two men spoke to each other.

“We temporarily took away the political dialogue that exists as far as divisive conversation, and I met this individual where he was at and identified that the average citizen, we want the same thing,” he stated. “And those things we want, they are in alignment with the conservative views of the Republican Party.”

Paschal hopes that he gets to engage in many more of those conversations in the future.

“My message to those who normally vote in one direction without thinking is let’s have a conversation, and let’s talk about what is important to you,” he said. “My goal is to continue to work hard to set the example and be the voice for all citizens in Shelby County and also be a voice for the people of color who feel like they don’t have a voice or only one voice.”

Printed on all of Paschal’s campaign material is ‘God and Country!’ And he is consistent in emphasizing that it is more than merely a slogan to him.

“God and country is the key to all of this divisiveness that we’re seeing,” he concluded. “If we can focus on that, I truly believe Alabama can change our country.”

Tim Howe is an owner of Yellowhammer Multimedia