By Alabama Public Radio
Montgomery, AL – Campaign finance reports show the Alabama Democratic Party and a prominent law firm paid for ads critical of the state Republican Party. The group Alabama Values Coalition got 85-hundred dollars from the State Democratic Executive Committee. It also received more than 31-thousand dollars from three political action committees funded by Jere Beasley's Montgomery law firm. The coalition then paid 50-thousand dollars to a Birmingham ad agency for the campaign. The ads accused the Republican Party of requiring its legislative candidates to swear allegiance to party bosses instead of voters. It also said the party requires candidates to put the party before public interests. Alabama's Republican party has dismissed those claims.