An Alabama mom asked Ivey's office for help. The response has stirred outrage on TikTok.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to include Davis' email to the Gov. Kay Ivey's office. The email was received after Davis consented to the office releasing it.

Emily Davis, a 29-year-old single mom and Florence resident, said she emailed Gov. Kay Ivey's office through the website's contact form expressing her concerns of the state's middle class as a single mother, while advocating for a rent cap and other policies.

In the email sent to the governor's office April 30, Davis shared that she is currently struggling to pay rent, being "thousands of dollars behind in rent" and that she and her 3-year-old daughter would likely be evicted within two weeks. "I am college educated, I have a great résumé," she wrote in the email. "Jobs are just not there. Money is just not here. We are desperate and seeking help. When will things change?

"A single income used to suffice, it simply will not anymore. You were elected as our representative and you have to do something. Something has to change."

In response, she received a letter that listed, among other things, state-run child protective services and adoption services. The letter also noted that Ivey's office had contacted the Alabama Department of Human Resources about her situation.

On Sunday, Davis posted a video on TikTok criticizing the response from Ivey's office. By Wednesday, that video had gotten nearly 300,000 views on TikTok, and Davis has also posted multiple follow-up videos answering questions from commenters.

"So, about a month ago, I took it upon myself to reach out to our governor, Kay Ivey to let her know how the 'middle class' is struggling, and how there needs to be a rent cap," Davis said in the original video. "There needs to be more assistance than what there is, and there literally is no middle class anymore. We're struggling... we cannot afford anything."

Ivey's office responded to Davis' email May 15 with the following:

"As you likely know, the Alabama Department of Human Resources (DHR) administers several programs, including adult and child protective services, adoption and foster care programs, food and family assistance, child support, and more. While DHR is the administrator of these programs and services, the agency must always act in compliance with state and federal law. Furthermore, state law often specifies coordination of these programs and services with county human resources offices, which fall under local government jurisdiction."

The letter also stated that "given the nature" of Davis' contact with Ivey's office DHR had also been contacted. Davis said the DHR emailed her May 2.

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Ivey's office said that the letter was "misinterpreted" and that "the governor’s office’s intent was very simply to connect an Alabamian in need with potential state agency resources that may be helpful."

"That's what you do when people reach out to you and let you know how the middle class is surviving," Davis said on her TikTok. "You tell me to put my kid up for adoption or utilize foster care?"

Davis said in her first email she "flat out told her [I] did not qualify for any of these programs" and that her child's father is actively involved. Due to the nature of the governor's office's contact forum, she does not have a copy of the original message.

A public records request has been submitted to the governor's office to receive Davis' original message.

Davis went live on TikTok Tuesday afternoon share others' stories and experiences with the DHR. She said she plans to continue sharing others' stories with the department as her own experiences continue.

Victor Hagan is the Alabama Election Reporting Fellow for the USA TODAY Network. He can be reached at vhagan@gannett.com or on X @TheVictorHagan. To support his work, subscribe to the Advertiser.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Response from Ivey's office stirs outrage on Alabama mom's TikTok