Robert Julian Bentley (born February 3, 1943) is an American former politician and physician who served as the 53rd governor of Alabama from 2011 until 2017 upon his resignation following his arrest after a sex scandal involving a political aide. A member of the Republican Party, Bentley was elected governor in 2010 and re-elected in 2014.
Born in Columbiana, Alabama, Bentley earned his M.D. from the University of Alabama School of Medicine in 1968 and then served in the United States Air Force as a medical officer until leaving the service as a captain. He entered private medical practice and opened a series of dermatology clinics throughout the southern United States.
Bentley was elected to the Alabama House of Representatives in 2002 and served a total of two four-year terms from 2003 to 2010. In 2010, Bentley announced his intentions to run for the Republican nomination for governor. Bentley won in a seven-candidate primary and faced Democrat Ron Sparks, the outgoing Alabama Commissioner of Agriculture, in the general election. Bentley received just over 58% of the statewide vote and won by a margin of over 230,000 votesthe largest margin recorded for a Republican in an open-seat race in Alabama history. In 2014, Bentley won re-election, winning the largest percentage of the vote that any Republican gubernatorial candidate had received in modern Alabama history, 63.6%.
On April 5, 2016, Republican State Representative Ed Henry filed an impeachment resolution against Bentley in the State Legislature, in connection with allegations that Bentley engaged in an extramarital affair with a female political adviser. Bentley has admitted to making inappropriate remarks toward the woman, but denied having a physical affair. On July 7, 2016, the House Judiciary Committee named a special counsel to lead an impeachment inquiry against the governor. On April 5, 2017, the Ethics Commission found probable cause that Bentley violated both ethics and campaign finance laws. Bentley tendered his immediate resignation as Governor of Alabama on April 10, 2017, after pleading guilty to two misdemeanor charges related to campaign finance law. Bentley allegedly used state resources to facilitate and conceal his extramarital affair. As part of the plea deal, he accepted a lifetime ban from ever seeking public office in Alabama again.Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley resigns, CNN (April 10, 2017).Amber Phillips, Alabama governor resigns, pleads guilty to charges tied to allegations he tried to cover up affair with a top aide, Washington Post (April 10, 2017).
Early life, education, and Air Force service Bentley is a native of Columbiana, Alabama, in Shelby County. His parents, Mattie Boyd (née Vick) and David Harford Bentley, did not complete school past junior high. Bentley's father was a sawmill worker who voted with the Populist Republicans, a splinter branch of the Republican Party formed by people who had been part of the state's defunct populist movement. At one point, Bentley lived in a house with no electricity or running water.
Bentley grew up in Columbiana, where he was a member of Shelby County High School's 1961 state championship debate team, and he became student body president in his senior year of high school.
After graduating from Shelby County High School at the top of his class, Bentley enrolled at the University of Alabama. While at Alabama, Bentley majored in chemistry and biology and graduated with his Bachelor of Science degree in three years.
After graduating from UA, he began his studies at The University of Alabama School of Medicine. During his first year of medical school, he met Martha Dianne Jones of Montgomery. They were married on July 24, 1965. He graduated with his M.D. in 1968 and began his one-year internship at Carraway Methodist Hospital in Birmingham.
Bentley joined the United States Air Force in 1969 as a captain. He served as a general medical officer at Pope Air Force Base in Fayetteville, North Carolina. While there, he served as an interim hospital commander for a time.
Dermatologist career Following his military service, Bentley began a three-year residency at the University of Alabama in dermatology. He then opened his dermatology practice in Tuscaloosa in 2019. He founded a number of small businesses, the most successful of which is Alabama Dermatology Associates. As President of Alabama Dermatology Associates, Bentley managed the practice's growth into one of the largest dermatology practices in the Southeastern United States. Bentley is a board certified dermatologist, and he served two terms as President of the Alabama Dermatology Society. He has also been named to "Best Doctors in America," selected by his peers. Bentley is a member of the American Academy of Dermatology and the Medical Association of Alabama.
Alabama House of Representatives
Elections In 1998, Bentley ran for the Alabama State Senate as a Republican against incumbent Democrat Phil Poole, losing by fifty-eight votes.
In 2002 Bentley was elected to the Alabama State House of Representatives from Tuscaloosa County with almost 65% of the vote. In 2006 Bentley ran unopposed for re-election to the State House.
Tenure In the Alabama House of Representatives, Bentley made it a priority to train primary care health care providers and to increase organ donation. He is responsible for two major revisions of Alabama's organ donor laws: one specific to corneas and the other reinforcing the rights of organ donors by making it difficult to challenge their decisions.
Bentley helped establish the Alabama Medical Educational Consortium. His efforts included work on legislation to expand scholarships for medical training. Questions were raised by Sparks camp during the gubernatorial campaign as to whether Bentley's son, while in medical school, benefited from his father's involvement with the consortium.
Bentley is opposed to increasing taxes. He has signed the No New Taxes Pledge by the Americans for Tax Reform.
In April 2010, Bentley's self-drafted Reemployment Act of 2010 won unanimous approval in both houses of the Alabama State Legislature, and was signed by Governor Bob Riley on April 22.
In 2008, Bentley was elected as a Republican Presidential Delegate for Mike Huckabee. At the Republican National Convention he represented Alabama on the Republican Platform Committee. For the United States presidential election in 2016, Bentley endorsed fellow governor John Kasich.
Committee assignments During his time in Montgomery he served on the Education Appropriations Committee, the Boards and Commissions Committee, the Agriculture and Forestry Committee, and was a member of the Tuscaloosa County Legislative Delegation. He also served as the Vice-Chairman of the Internal Affairs Committee.
Governor of Alabama (2011–2017)
2010 gubernatorial election
In the June 1, 2010 primary race, Bentley surprised political analysts by finishing second ahead of Tim James to reach a runoff election with Bradley Byrne. One of James' supporters, former U.S. Representative Sonny Callahan, endorsed Bentley in the runoff.
In the July 13 run-off election, Bentley defeated Byrne by a 56%-44% margin to claim the Republican nomination for governor, leaning on the Alabama Education Association.
In the general election, Bentley defeated Democrat Ron Sparks, 57.9% to 42.1%.
Bentley has stated he does not approve of gambling in the State of Alabama, but supports a referendum for its citizens to vote on whether to approve its legality.
2014 gubernatorial election
In the general election held on November 4, 2014, Bentley won re-election easily against Democratic candidate Parker Griffith, gathering almost twice the votes of his rival at 63% to 36%. In the process, Bentley won the largest percentage of the vote of any Republican gubernatorial candidate in modern Alabama history.
Two days after he was inaugurated, Bentley told a Baptist church audience that only those who had accepted Jesus Christ as their savior were his brothers and sisters. Bentley apologized for the remarks, saying he would be a "governor of all the people."
Tenure
Bentley's tenure was largely defined by his scandal. Nonetheless, Montgomery Advertiser praised his response to deadly tornadoes that swept through Alabama in Spring 2011. He also advocated for increased funding for pre-K programs, and, in 2015, he played a major role in the removal of Confederate flags from the State Capitol. He also argued with state Republican leaders for a 2% teacher pay raise, and in 2015, he also proposed a $700+ million revenue package consisting of tax increases.
An analysis of Republican governors by Nate Silver of The New York Times in April 2013 ranked Bentley as the 16th most conservative governor in the country.Silver, Nate (April 16, 2013) – "In State Governments, Signs of a Healthier G.O.P.". The New York Times. Retrieved February 9, 2015.
Political positions
Abortion Bentley is anti-abortion, but in 2010, he supported abortions in cases where the mother's life was in danger.
Budget and economy Bentley favors a balanced and conservative budget without federal aid, despite the fact that Alabama ranks No. 7 in federal aid per person as of 2022. He pledged to cut taxes 15-45% in 2011 while protecting essential services.
Civil rights In 1998, he called to affirmative action for colleges & state contracts. He does not support gay marriage or civil unions as of 2010. He also voted against adding sexual orientation to hate crime criteria.
Criminal justice Bentley supports ending parole for repeat felons. As governor, he supported expanding the death penalty and limit appeals. He advocates against defunding the police, instead calling for police budget increases (such as to train them in Spanish). He called for the construction of four new state prison facilities. However, after leaving office, Bentley became more skeptical of capital punishment: in 2023, he and former governor Don Siegelman called for the commutation of every death sentence in Alabama decided by a non-unanimous jury or through judicial override.
Donald Trump Bentley refused to endorse Donald J. Trump in the 2016 presidential campaign.
Drugs Bentley has called for strengthening penalties for drug-related crimes, but he has expressed support for rehabilitation for non-violent criminals, such as drug offenders. He has pledged to fight opioid addiction and drug use.
Education Bentley has supported moment-of-silence and teacher spanking laws. He has advocated for more power to local school boards to make decisions.
Environment and energy Bentley supports off-shore drilling and the oil and gas industries. He believes the primary value of forests is economic and job related. He has claimed that Gulf State Park is economically & environmentally sustainable.
Foreign policy Bentley supported a suit of federal government to reform Refugee Resettlement Act.
Jobs Bentley refused to accept his gubernatorial salary until the state unemployment level reached 5.2%."About Governor Bentley". The Office of Alabama Governor. Retrieved February 9, 2015. In a June 2013 analysis by The Business Journal looking at 45 of the country's 50 governors by their job creation record, Bentley was ranked at number 36 (tied). The five governors omitted from the analysis all assumed office in 2013. The ranking was based on a comparison of the annual private sector growth rate in all 50 states using data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.Thomas, G. Scott (June 27, 2013) - "How State Governors Rank On Their Job-Growth Record". The Business Journals. Retrieved February 9, 2015. According to his official website, in Bentley's first three years in office, Alabama gained nearly 60,000 jobs, and in addition, Governor Bentley had recruited over 55,000 new, future jobs.
Government reform Bentley spoken against campaign spending limits and government funding of candidates.