On March 5, Shomari Figures (D) and Anthony Daniels (D) advanced to a primary runoff in the Democratic primary election for Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District. In Alabama, if no candidate receives a majority of votes, the top-two vote getters advance to a primary runoff. As of March 6, Figures received 43.5% of the vote and Daniels received 22.4%. The runoff is on April 16.
Out of the 11 candidates who ran for office, six led in local media attention: Napoleon Bracy Jr. (D), Merika Coleman (D), Daniels, Figures, Juandalynn Givan (D), and Jeremy Gray (D).
The primary took place against the backdrop of court-ordered redistricting. In October 2023, a three-judge panel of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama approved a new congressional district map for Alabama after federal courts found two previous redistricting efforts violated the Voting Rights Act. The October 2023 map redrew the 2nd District to have a 48.7% Black voting-age population, which political commentators said would tilt it towards Democrats.
Incumbent Barry Moore (R) ran for re-election in the 1st District, leaving the 2nd District open.
Figures, a former federal official who had worked in the Obama administration, the U.S. Congress, and as counselor to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, said he was inspired to run by his parents, both of whom served in the state legislature. He said his experience working in the federal government would help him deliver results.
Daniels, the minority leader of the Alabama House of Representatives, said he had a record of delivering results that set him apart from the other candidates. For example, he said he worked with Republicans in the legislative majority to pass a bill exempting overtime pay from state income tax.
Also running in the primary were James Averhart (D), Phyllis Harvey-Hall (D), Willie Lenard (D), Vimal Patel (D), and Larry Darnell Simpson (D).
As of March 4, The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter, Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales, and Larry J. Sabato’s Crystal Ball each rated the general election Likely Democratic.
