The redrawing of Alabama’s congressional map has created a political showdown, setting the stage for the first member-on-member primary in the 2024 US House elections. Republican Representative Barry Moore, currently representing the 2nd District, is gearing up to challenge his fellow Republican colleague, Representative Jerry Carl, who currently holds the seat for the 1st District.
This development comes after a federal court approved a new congressional map earlier this month. The new map significantly increases the Black population in Moore’s current 2nd District, potentially making it a competitive battleground for Democrats. In response, Moore officially announced his candidacy for Congress in a statement released on Monday, emphasizing his commitment to representing his hometown and the people of Alabama’s newly configured 1st District.
“Alabama’s First Congressional District is now one of the most conservative in the nation, and we deserve an effective representative in Congress who is equally as conservative,” declared Moore.
In response to reports of Moore’s challenge, Representative Jerry Carl, the incumbent in the current 1st District, welcomed the competition, stating, “Bring it on.”
The new 1st District is a hybrid, incorporating territory from both the current 1st and 2nd Districts, creating overlapping constituencies for the two incumbent Republicans. The remapping also brought about significant changes in the demographics, with the new 2nd District designed to have a 48.7% Black voting-age population. This alteration was a response to a divided US Supreme Court ruling, stemming from a case concerning an earlier map, which upheld a lower-court directive for Alabama to include a second congressional district with a majority-Black population or something very close to it within its seven-seat congressional map.
In his candidacy announcement on Monday, Barry Moore sought to position himself as the conservative choice for the new 1st District, highlighting his membership in the House Freedom Caucus.
Jerry Carl, who was also first elected to the House in 2020, emphasized his conservative credentials and his willingness to confront President Joe Biden’s policies.
“I have a proven track record of putting Alabama first every day and delivering conservative results for Alabama’s First Congressional District. I’m not afraid to fight Biden’s radical, out-of-touch ideas or any other challenges that come my way,” stated Carl’s campaign.