In Alabama, the GOP Senate primary was held on Tuesday night, with attorney Katie Britt and Rep. Mo Brooks qualifying for the June 21 runoff. Alabama Republicans made the right decision by voting for Katie Britt. Unlike Mo Brooks, Britt is a conservative who can earn the support of her constituents without relying on national political trends.

The entire rationale for voting for Brooks quickly fell apart when former President Donald Trump withdrew his endorsement. Labeling himself “MAGA Mo” and campaigning on his ties with Trump, Brooks did not develop a cohesive platform outside of loyalty to Trump. He failed to consider that his loyalty to the former president would not be reciprocated.

Both Katie Britt and Mo Brooks express their support for the Trump administration’s policy successes on their websites, but Brooks fails to mention issues of local importance, while Britt does. Despite being a member of the Rural Broadband Caucus, Brooks does not mention anything about the issue on his page. His congressional account has one tweet about rural broadband from July 2021.

Contrast Rep. Brooks’s tweet with Katie Britt’s campaign stance on healthcare. “We must close the health care gap that exists in our state … by expanding telehealth options through increased access to high-speed broadband internet services,” says Britt’s healthcare policy plank.

She understands how important the issue is to Alabamians and recognizes the dismal state of broadband in the state. “Our state currently ranks 47th in the nation in broadband connectivity and that lack of access is negatively impacting health care, education, the economy and quality of life in communities across Alabama.”

Britt provides real solutions to real problems, while Brooks is still stuck in the past. “The ObamaCare status quo is unacceptable, and I look forward to continuing toward a full repeal of the disastrous healthcare law,” says Brooks’s website.

Brooks does not specifically mention his solution. “I have co-sponsored legislation that replaces ObamaCare with common sense health care solutions that are patient/doctor and free enterprise centered,” he says. Does Brooks intend for voters to engage in a deep dive of Congress.gov to determine what he supports? Repealing Obamacare is an easy answer that every post-Obama Republican has recited. His constituents deserve original thoughts, not talking points.

Gov. Kay Ivey of Alabama has made commendable progress in providing Alabama’s rural citizens with broadband access, but there is more work to be done. Neglecting to mention such a critical issue in nearly every piece of campaign material is one of the many flaws of Mo Brooks.

Brooks decries the “Republican Establishment” in his TV ads but touts major Republican figures and organizations on his campaign website. The NRA, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), and Trumpworld leaders such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and Dr. Kelli Ward are found throughout his endorsements page. These are not local Alabamians but national organizations and Republican figures.

Katie Britt’s endorsement page proves to Alabama Republicans why she’s the better candidate. Not a single endorsement from any politician is posted on her page, despite her being endorsed by outgoing Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL), whose seat she is vying to fill. From the Home Builders Association of Alabama to FarmPAC, the political action committee of the Alabama Farmers Federation, Britt’s page is filled with Alabamian grassroots organizations.

Everyday Alabamians have coalesced around Katie Britt’s campaign. With or without Donald Trump and Republican members of Congress, Britt has demonstrated her ability to sway voters by her merits alone. Mo Brooks thinks being a conservative entails loyalty to one man. Katie Britt understands that conservatives build communities.

James Sweet is a summer 2022 Washington Examiner fellow.