Walk onto the University of Alabama campus on a Tuesday in early spring, and everything looks pretty normal. Students are lounging on the Quad, the library is packed, and the smell of fried food drifts from the Strip. But if you look closer at the sorority and fraternity houses, there’s a weird tension in the air. People are checking their phones constantly. Group chats are exploding.
This is election day for the Student Government Association (SGA). And for over a century, these days haven't really been about "student voices." They've been about The Machine.
What exactly is The Machine at the University of Alabama?
Honestly, if you ask the University administration, they’ll probably give you a blank stare. Officially, The Machine doesn't exist. It has no office, no website, and no faculty advisor. But everyone on campus knows it’s the shadow government that has run the school since 1914.
Technically, it's a secret coalition called Theta Nu Epsilon. It’s made up of representatives from about 28 historically white Greek organizations. Think of it as a political PAC, but one that uses social pressure, block-voting, and—historically—some pretty dark tactics to make sure their hand-picked candidates win every single major seat on campus.
You might think student politics is just a resume builder, but at Alabama, it’s a pipeline. The Machine has produced governors, U.S. Senators, and CEOs. It’s a training ground for the real-world "Old Boys' Club."
Why the secrecy still matters in 2026
You’d think in the age of TikTok and leaks, a secret society would be impossible to maintain. Kinda. While everyone knows who the "Machine houses" are—big names like Phi Gamma Delta (FIJI), Kappa Delta, and Alpha Gamma Delta—the actual meetings happen in secret locations, usually late at night.
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They don't just pick the SGA President. They pick the Homecoming Queen. They decide who gets the best block seating at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
If you’re a member of a Machine house, you don’t really "choose" who to vote for. You’re told. In February 2025, The Crimson White (the student paper that has been the only real check on this power for a century) reported that sorority members were being harassed with "unabated texts" and calls until they proved they had voted. Some houses even used fines—sometimes upwards of $100—if a member didn't show up to the polls.
It’s not just "harmless" tradition
People like to joke about it being like a bad teen movie, but the history is actually pretty violent.
Take 1976. Cleo Thomas became the first Black SGA president, beating the Machine. In response, 15 men in white sheets burned a cross on campus. Fast forward to 1993, when a non-Machine candidate named Minda Riley was physically assaulted. She ended up with a knife wound on her face after a series of threats and a cross burning on her lawn.
Even as recently as the 2024 Homecoming elections, candidates like Maria Derisavi have reportedly been intimidated into withdrawing. The tactics have shifted from physical violence to "digital warfare"—doxing, social ostracism, and relentless phone harassment—but the goal is the same: total control.
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The "Machine Houses" (A partial list)
The list of houses involved is the worst-kept secret in Tuscaloosa. It includes:
- Fraternities: Beta Theta Pi, Delta Kappa Epsilon, Phi Delta Theta, Sigma Chi, Sigma Alpha Epsilon.
- Sororities: Alpha Chi Omega, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Phi Mu, Delta Delta Delta, Alpha Gamma Delta.
If you’re in one of these houses and you decide to run as an "independent" or vote for one, you’re basically committing social suicide. You might get "broken"—meaning your own house turns against you.
The 2025 election and the "Uncontested" problem
The most recent spring 2025 elections were a perfect example of how the system is currently "winning" by making sure nobody else even tries. For the first time in years, almost every single Executive Council position was uncontested.
Why? Because running against the Machine is exhausting. You’ll be hit with dozens of "campaign violations" filed by Machine-aligned students to get you disqualified. You’ll be followed. Your friends will be pressured to stop talking to you.
As Eyram Gbeddy, a former senator, told the campus paper, "The Machine thrives off the lack of engagement." When only 23% of the student body votes, and almost all of those are Greek members who are required to vote for one specific person, the outcome is a math problem that’s already been solved.
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Can the system actually be broken?
Every decade or so, there's a "revolution." In 2015, Elliot Spillers became the first Black SGA president in decades to win without Machine backing. It felt like a turning point. But the Machine just adapted. They started inviting certain Black student leaders into the fold to "diversify" the group without actually giving up the underlying power structure.
Recently, the University finally amended the Code of Student Conduct to explicitly ban "threatening or intimidating a candidate into withdrawing." It’s a small step, but for a school that spent 100 years pretending the Machine didn't exist, it’s a huge admission of reality.
Actionable insights for students and observers
If you're a student at Alabama or just someone watching this from the outside, here’s how the power dynamic actually shifts:
- Don't ignore the "small" offices. The Machine focuses on the Presidency, but independent candidates often find success in smaller college-specific senate seats where the voter turnout is low enough that a grassroots campaign can actually win.
- Support student journalism. The Crimson White is the only reason we know half of these details. They are often the ones who find the "cheat sheets" left behind in frat houses.
- Demand transparency on "Block Seating." This is the Machine's biggest carrot. They use the best seats at football games to reward houses that fall in line. If the University moved to a purely merit-based or lottery system for all student seating, the Machine would lose one of its primary leverage points.
- Watch for the "Independent" label. Sometimes Machine candidates will run as "independents" to fool non-Greek voters. Check their Greek affiliation; if they are in a Machine house but claiming to be independent, they are likely a "stalking horse" candidate.
The Machine isn't a ghost story; it's a very real political organization that manages millions of dollars in student fees. While the "cross-burning" era is hopefully in the past, the "voter-intimidation" era is still very much alive in Tuscaloosa. Change only happens when the 75% of students who aren't in those houses decide that their $11,000+ in annual tuition gives them the right to a government they actually chose.
Next Steps for Research
To see the latest on how the university is handling these issues, you can monitor the SGA's official election results and compare them against the Endorsements usually leaked on social media a week prior. Following the @TheCrimsonWhite on social media is the most reliable way to get live updates during the February election cycles when the Machine's activity peaks.