Gov. Kay Ivey sets special election date for newly-redrawn Congressional districts
Gov. Kay Ivey signs a proclamation to declare a special election for Alabama Congressional districts 1, 2, 6 and 7. (Governor’s Office /Hal Yeager)
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WAKA) – Gov. Kay Ivey has set a special election date for the Alabama Congressional districts which have new district lines.
Gov. Ivey set the special primary election for Tuesday, August 11, for Congressional districts 1, 2, 6 and 7, which cover the majority of the Action 8 News viewing area. There will be no runoff election, so whomever has the most votes in the primary will move on to the general election, even if the candidate doesn’t receive more than 50% of the vote.
This special election affects these counties: Autauga, Baldwin, Barbour, Bibb, Bullock, Butler, Chilton, Choctaw, Clarke, Coffee, Conecuh, Coosa, Covington, Crenshaw, Dale, Dallas, Elmore, Escambia, Geneva, Greene, Hale, Henry, Houston, Jefferson, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Mobile, Monroe, Montgomery, Perry, Pickens, Pike, Russell, Shelby, Sumter, Talladega, Tuscaloosa, Washington and Wilcox.
The general election for these districts will occur as planned with all other races on Tuesday, November 3.
Qualifying will begin Wednesday, May 20. The deadline for qualifying will be Friday, May 22, at 5PM. The deadline for qualifying with all independent and minor political parties will be Tuesday, August 11, at 5PM.
Gov. Ivey on Tuesday celebrated the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to vacate the court-ordered congressional map, allowing for the use of the 2023 Alabama-drawn congressional map.
“I will continue to say: Alabama knows our state, our people and our districts best. The United States Supreme Court’s decision is plain common sense and enables our values to be best represented in Congress,” Gov. Ivey said. “For years, we have fought for this outcome, and I am proud to celebrate this win for Alabamians.”
This will be the Congressional district map used in the 2026 elections. Districts 1, 2, 6 and 7 have had their lines altered from the court-drawn map used in 2024 – Photo from Alabama Governor’s Office
The reason this is happening is because of a U.S. Supreme Court decision involving a Congressional district in Louisiana. The court struck down the district, saying race was too big of a factor in how it was drawn up. That decision has implications on other majority-minority Congressional districts and to the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Alabama Republicans used that as a basis to change the state’s Congressional districts for this year. Previous maps that the Legislature had drawn up after the 2020 Census were thrown out by the courts, which said the state must create a district to give Black Alabama voters a greater chance at electing a Black candidate. The courts themselves changed the maps, which allowed Black Democrat Shomari Figures to win the 2nd Congressional District seat in 2024.
Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court gave Alabama permission to revert back to the map the Legislature had approved. That means Figures would be vulnerable in his bid for re-election, because his district would once again favor a Republican.
These special elections don’t affect the regular May 19 primaries that will go on as scheduled.
