Today Is Special Primary Runoff Election Day for Some in Alabama

For the third time this midterm election year, Alabama voters will return to the polls today to cast ballots only in the runoffs for congressional districts 1, 2, 6, and 7.

How We Got Here

Today's vote is a result of the state legislature's controversial remapping of congressional districts, as was demanded of GOP-controlled states by President Trump. He pushed the redistricting based on a claim that several states’ maps were unfairly drawn and disadvantaged Republicans, especially after the 2020 Census.

The federal courts had redrawn Alabama's district map to produce a second majority-minority district in Alabama. That resulted in Congressman Shomari Figures, a black Democrat, being elected in South Alabama's 2nd district.

A potential return of Democratic control of the U.S. House would make Trump's final two years in office a constant battle. Thus, the White House believed remapping Alabama, Georgia, and North Carolina congressional districts could produce additional Republican seats.

After another court battle between Alabama legislative Republicans and voting rights groups, the state GOP got a favorable ruling from the conservative-dominated U.S. Supreme Court, allowing Alabama to return to a previous map that had been determined to be racially discriminatory.

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On the Ballot Today

Not all West Alabama counties will be voting tomorrow. Lamar, Fayette, and Walker counties have no runoff in either party.

Bibb County has one runoff in the Democratic Party. Jacob Bauma-Sims, Ashtyn Kennedy, Maurice Mercer, and Keith Pilkington are vying to win their party's nomination for the November General Election.

District 7's incumbent Democrat Congresswoman Terri Sewell is unopposed, but there are two Republicans facing off in their party's runoff, Ammie Akin and David O. Perry.

West Alabama counties voting in tomorrow's Republican runoff are Greene, Hale, Perry, Sumter, and Tuscaloosa. Bibb County balloting is in the Democratic Party.

What to Know

• Polls open at 7:00am and close at 7:00pm,
• You must be a registered voter (must have been registered at least 14 days prior to the election),
• You must vote in the same political party runoff as you did in the May primary,
• You must vote at your assigned polling place,:You must present a valid photo ID. Valid IDs include:
  • Alabama Driver's License
  • Alabama non-driver ID,
  • Alabama Voter ID card
  • State-issued ID
  • Federal issued ID (passport, military ID, Government employee ID),
  • Student ID from a public or private Alabama college or university,
  • Tribal ID.
• Absentee ballots being returned by hand to the absentee election manager in your county must be received no later than the close of business today (Monday),
• Absentee ballots being returned by mail to the absentee election manager must be received no later than noon Tuesday, election day,
• This is the last day for military and other UOCAVA voters in the special primary election to postmark an absentee ballot returned by mail to the absentee election manager,
• The medical emergency designee must deliver the absentee ballot to the absentee election manager no later than noon on election day.

There will be no runoffs from Tuesday's election. The winner will represent their party as the nominee in November.

The General Election is scheduled for Tuesday, November 3rd.