The 2024 United States House of Representatives elections in Alabama were held on November 5, 2024, to elect the seven U.S. representatives from the state of Alabama, one from each of the state's seven congressional districts. The elections coincided with the 2024 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate, and various state and local elections.
Candidate qualifying for both major parties ended on November 10, 2023. Primary elections were held on March 5, 2024, as Alabama was a Super Tuesday state in the presidential election calendar. In races where no candidate received over 50% in a primary, runoff elections occurred on April 16, 2024; this occurred in both the Democratic and Republican primaries in Alabama's 2nd congressional district.
Background
Allen v. Milligan During the 2020 redistricting cycle, Alabama's congressional map faced legal challenges for alleged violations of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. 27% of Alabama's population is African American, but only one of Alabama's seven districts was drawn with a Black majority. A federal panel initially blocked the 2022 map, finding that the state illegally discriminated against Black voters by not drawing a second majority-Black district. However, on February 7, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States granted a stay on the case that had been requested by the state of Alabama, allowing the map to remain in place for the 2022 elections, but signaled it would fully review the case at a later date.
On June 8, 2023, the Supreme Court affirmed the previous finding that the map discriminated against Black Alabamians. In a 5–4 decision in Allen v. Milligan, Justice Brett Kavanaugh and Chief Justice John Roberts joined the Supreme Court's liberal wing (Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson, Elena Kagan, and Sonia Sotomayor) and ruled in favor of Milligan. The decision, considered an unexpected victory for voting rights activists in Alabama, upheld the federal panel's ruling that Alabama had illegally diluted the power of Black voters. The decision forced Alabama to reconfigure its congressional districts in advance of the 2024 elections, including drawing a second predominantly Black district. The Alabama Legislature was required to convene a special legislative session in order to draw a new map. John Wahl, chair of the Alabama Republican Party, published a statement in reaction to the ruling, stating that the party would "work hard to win all seven congressional seats".
Redistricting process
A special session of the Alabama Legislature was called to approve a new congressional map in July 2023, with a deadline of July 21. The Alabama House of Representatives and Alabama Senate passed two different congressional maps separately, neither of which included a second majority-minority district. The Alabama House of Representatives passed a map proposed by Republican Representative Chris Pringle that increased the Black voting age population in Alabama's 2nd congressional district to 42%, but still below the majority-minority threshold. The Alabama Senate passed a map proposed by Republican Senator Steve Livingston that increased it to only 38%. A special conference committee consisting of six members from both wings of the Alabama Legislature passed a new map with additional changes on July 21. The new congressional map was signed into law by Governor Kay Ivey the same day. In the legislature's map, the Black voting age population in Alabama's 7th congressional district was reduced from 55.6% to 50.6%, while Alabama's 2nd congressional district's Black voting age population was increased to 39.9%.
The map enacted by the state was struck down on September 5, confirming speculation by Black lawmakers in the state that it failed to comply with the requirement for a second majority Black district. The panel of judges ruling on the maps wrote that they were "deeply troubled that the State enacted a map that the State readily admits does not provide the remedy we said federal law requires". The judges appointed a special master, Richard Allen (no relation to Wes Allen or Allen v. Milligan), to take control of the mapmaking process following Alabama lawmakers' defiance. Three proposed maps from the special master were released on September 25. In all of the maps, Coffee County, which was represented by and home to Barry Moore, was moved to Alabama's 1st congressional district, which set up a primary in which Jerry Carl and Moore were both incumbents pitted against each other.
Finalization of special master map The state of Alabama, under Attorney General of Alabama Steve Marshall, requested a stay on the federal panel's decision to not allow the legislature's new map. On September 26, 2023, the Supreme Court again denied Alabama's request, meaning that the special master's map was to be used in the 2024 elections. All three of the proposed remedial maps raised the Black voting-age population in the second congressional district in ranges from 48.5% to 50.1%. The Alabama Democratic Conference, the Black caucus of the Alabama Democratic Party, also announced the same day that it planned to file an objection to the special master's maps, saying that they did not go far enough to create a majority-minority district. The conference offered its own redistricting map in the objection, but it was denied by the federal panel.
Following another hearing on the case, the federal panel issued an opinion on October 5, 2023, ordering Alabama to implement the congressional map known as Remedial Plan 3, as drawn by the special master. Secretary of State of Alabama Wes Allen said his office would implement the new map for the 2024 elections. In Remedial Plan 3, Alabama's 2nd congressional district has a Black voting-age population of 48.7%, and a Black-preferred candidate was found to have won in 16 of 17 simulated elections.
Overview
Republicans won five districts, while Democrats won two: the newly created second one and the existing seventh one. Both those districts are plurality Black, whereas the ones by Republicans are predominantly white. Such a correlation is consistent with a preference towards Democrats among Alabama's Black voters. Democrats fielded their candidates in four districts out of seven, with Republicans securing almost unchallenged victories in the third, fourth and fifth districts. Outside of those, Republicans earned their best result in the first district, with 78.4% of the vote.
Republicans improved on their 2022 result, earning 3.5% of the vote more. However, this election became the first since 2008 when Democrats held more than a single seat in Alabama. Furthermore, this marked the first time when two Black Representatives were simultaneously elected from the state. District Rep., # Rep., % Dem., # Dem., % Elected258,61978.4%70,92921.5%Barry Moore 131,41445.4%158,041 54.6%Shomari Figures 243,84897.9%N/AN/AMike Rogers 274,49898.8%N/AN/ARobert Aderholt 250,32295.4%N/AN/ADale Strong 243,74170.3%102,504 29.6%Gary Palmer 106,16836.3%186,40763.7%Terri Sewell
District 1
Under the new congressional map, the 1st congressional district encompasses the southernmost parts of the state, including all of Baldwin, Coffee, Covington, Dale, and Escambia counties, including the cities of Bay Minette, Daphne, Enterprise and Ozark. It also includes whiter parts of Mobile County and the city of Mobile. Incumbent Republican Jerry Carl had been re-elected with 84.2% of the vote in 2022 against a Libertarian candidate.
Following redistricting, 2nd district incumbent Barry Moore was placed into the 1st district as well, setting up a primary between Moore and Carl, both incumbents. On October 30, 2023, Moore confirmed to 1819 News that he would run in the first congressional district, challenging Carl in the Republican primary.
Republican primary Nominee Barry Moore, incumbent U.S. representative
Eliminated in primary Jerry Carl, incumbent U.S. representative
Endorsements
Fundraising Campaign finance reports as of June 30, 2024CandidateRaisedSpentCash on handJerry Carl (R)$2,204,868$2,586,226$72,539Barry Moore (R)$969,981$1,314,556$118,222Source: Federal Election Commission
Debates and forums + 2024 AL-1 Republican primary debates and forums Date Location Host Moderator Link Participants Participant Absent Invited Carl Moore 1 January 15, 2024 Mobile Mobile County Republican Party None (forum) N/A 2 January 24, 2024 Daphne Baldwin County Republican Party Peter AlbrechtJeff PoorSean Sullivan Facebook 3 February 8, 2024 Fairhope Eastern Shore Republican Women None (forum) N/A 4 February 19, 2024 Orange Beach Baldwin County Conservative Coalition Robert Monk N/A 5 February 21, 2024 Enterprise Republican Women of Coffee County Sheridan Smith Facebook
Polling Poll source Date(s)administered Samplesize Marginof error JerryCarl BarryMoore UndecidedAuburn UniversityAuburn UniversityFebruary 27, 20241,909 (LV)± 2.2%43%35%22%Montgomery ResearchMontgomery ResearchJanuary 2024697 (V)± 3.4%37%41%22%
Results Moore won the six counties in the eastern part of the district, recording his best performance in his home Coffee County. Meanwhile, Carl won Escambia and Baldwin counties, as well as his home Mobile County.
Democratic primary Nominee Tom Holmes, nonprofit executive
Fundraising Campaign finance reports as of June 30, 2024CandidateRaisedSpentCash on handTom Holmes (D)$8,469$5,968$2,001Source: Federal Election Commission
General election Predictions SourceRankingAs of The Cook Political Report October 20, 2023 Inside Elections October 20, 2023 Sabato's Crystal Ball October 4, 2023 Elections Daily October 5, 2023 CNalysis November 16, 2023 Decision Desk HQ October 22, 2024
Fundraising Campaign finance reports as of June 30, 2024CandidateRaisedSpentCash on handBarry Moore (R)$969,981$1,314,556$118,222Tom Holmes (D)$8,469$5,968$2,001Source: Federal Election Commission
Results
By county CountyBarry MooreRepublicanTom HolmesDemocraticWrite-inVariousMarginTotal#%#%#%#%Baldwin96,76280.04%24,01119.86%1190.10%72,75160.18%120,892Coffee17,66879.81%4,44620.08%230.10%13,22259.73%22,137Covington14,50486.11%2,33513.86%40.02%12,16972.25%16,843Dale14,54676.77%4,38423.14%170.09%10,16253.63%18,947Escambia10,75573.31%3,90426.61%110.07%6,85146.70%14,670Geneva10,91788.80%1,37311.17%40.03%9,54477.63%12,294Henry7,06176.75%2,13423.20%50.05%4,92753.55%9,200Houston32,97474.96%10,96324.92%500.11%22,01150.04%43,987Mobile (part)53,43275.38%17,37924.52%730.10%36,05350.86%70,884Totals258,61978.40%70,92921.50%3060.09%187,69056.90%329,854
District 2
In the new congressional map, the 2nd district encompasses all of Montgomery County and the capital city of Montgomery, as well as majority Black sections of the Wiregrass Region and the city of Mobile. It also includes the entirety of Butler, Macon, Monroe, Pike, and Russell counties, including the cities of Greenville, Monroeville, Troy, and Tuskegee. The district is currently represented by Republican Barry Moore, who was re-elected with 69.12% of the vote in 2022; however, Moore's home county of Coffee was drawn out of the 2nd district and into the first. This left the district with no incumbent, as Moore instead chose to run in the 1st district.
Republican primary Nominee Caroleene Dobson, real estate attorney
Eliminated in runoff Dick Brewbaker, former state senator from the 25th district (2010–2018)
Eliminated in primary Greg Albritton, state senator from the 22nd district (2014–present) Karla DuPriest, restaurant owner, former Mobile County Absentee Ballot Manager, and candidate for U.S. Senate in 2022 Hampton Harris, real estate broker Stacey Shepperson, college instructor Belinda Thomas, Newton town councilor and Alabama Republican Party outreach coalition director
Withdrew Wallace Gilberry, former professional football player for the New York Giants (endorsed Brewbaker)
Declined