Alabama Democratic Party Chairman Randy Kelley said the party will challenge Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s eligibility to run for governor based on the residency requirement in the state constitution.

Kelley issued a statement Tuesday after Tuberville announced he would run for governor next year.

“Today, Tommy Tuberville finally revealed the open secret that he is planning to run for governor of Alabama despite not living here,” Kelley said. “His primary residence is in Florida.”

Section 117 of the Alabama Constitution says the governor must be a resident of the state “at least seven years next before the date of their election.”

Tuberville moved to Florida after he retired from coaching in 2016.

The senator claims a homestead exemption in Auburn and has been registered to vote in Alabama since March 2019.

He also owns homes in Santa Rosa Beach, Fla., and voted in Florida in 2018.

The house in Auburn that Tuberville claims as a homestead was originally bought by his wife, Suzanne and his son, Tucker, in 2017, al.com reported.

That home is valued at $271,000, while Tuberville’s beach house in Florida is valued at about $5 million, al.com reported.

Kelley said the claim that the Auburn house is Tuberville’s residence will not hold up to scrutiny.

“Claiming his son’s house as a homestead exemption while all travel receipts, voting, and living take place in Florida simply doesn’t cut it. We intend to challenge his residency in the Courts, “ Kelley said.

“If residency is no longer a requirement to run for office in the state of Alabama, that opens the doors for Democrats as well,” Kelley said.

When Tuberville ran for the Senate in 2020, former Sen. Jeff Sessions, his primary runoff opponent, raised the residency issue, calling Tuberville a “Florida man.”

But the Senate has no seven-year residency requirement and Sessions’ claims did not hurt Tuberville, who won the primary decisively.

In March this year, Tuberville dismissed concerns about the residency requirement after state Sen. Sam Givhan, R-Huntsville, brought it up during a radio interview.

“Well, I’ve been a United States Senator representing the state of Alabama for the last four years, with two more years remaining,” Tuberville said.

“There’s no problem with that. We looked at that six, seven years ago. It’s just people that are probably, maybe, wanting to run for governor. Hey, if you want to run, go run on your abilities. Don’t try to trick somebody else. There’s nothing to that.”

Kelley said the Democratic Party will not drop the issue.

“Tuberville is an incompetent Senator who embarrassed the state of Alabama via his withholding of military promotions for nearly 10 months,” Kelley said.

“He will be well aligned with the Trump administration who openly flouts the laws and Constitution daily. We will not simply sit back and allow that to happen.”

“Tuberville will do nothing to further the interests of Alabama voters, simply himself and Trump’s ego,” Kelley said.