Tuesday’s runoff for the Democratic nomination in Alabama’s new 2nd congressional district could have historical consequences.
The winner could become the second Black and second Democrat in the state’s seven-member delegation in the U.S. House of Representatives.
The race pits Shomari Figures of Mobile, who worked for the Obama administration and the Justice Department, against Alabama House Minority Leader Anthony Daniels of Huntsville.
They were the top finishers in a race that drew 11 Democratic candidates in the redrawn district, which takes in all or part of 13 counties from Montgomery to Mobile, from the Georgia line to the Mississippi line.
Figures led the field in the March 5 primary with 24,825 votes, or 43%. Daniels finished second with 12,774 votes, 22%.
Tuesday’s winner will face the winner of the Republican runoff between Dick Brewbaker and Caroleene Dobson in the Nov. 5 general election.
Figures and Daniels appeared together in a recorded forum that aired on television last week. There were no fireworks or sharp disagreements on issues. The main differences are in experience - Figures is an attorney who has worked in federal government, while Daniels has been a leader in the Alabama Legislature. Both say their work has prepared them to be effective in Congress.
Daniels was elected to the Legislature in 2014. He has served as House minority leader since 2017. Daniels said he has made important contributions even though the Democrats hold only one-fourth of the seats in the House. Last year, he sponsored a bill to exempt overtime pay from the state income tax, which passed with support from Republicans and took effect in January.
“I’ve had the ability to negotiate and find areas of common ground in order to drive through, push through legislation that’s meaningful, and that’s impactful to the citizens within the state of Alabama,” Daniels said. “That’ll be the same approach that I take in Congress, finding areas of common ground that both parties can agree with, and move legislation that’s meaningful.”
Daniels said he does not expect partisan stalemates in Washington to end, but said he thinks his ability to work with Republicans can make a difference.
“I’ve also had the experience of working across the aisle and getting things done,” Daniels said during his closing statement in the forum. “And so if I’m in a super minority in the Legislature in the state of Alabama, imagine what I could do when the numbers are close or the Democrats are in charge. I can deliver. I have the experience and and the track record of delivering for the people the state of Alabama.”
Figures worked on Barack Obama’s presidential campaign and in the White House and served as deputy chief of staff and counselor to Attorney General Merrick Garland in the Justice Department. He is the son of longtime state Sen. Vivian Davis Figures of Mobile and Michael Figures, who served 18 years as a state senator until his death in 1996.
“Listen, we have a choice of who we can send to to Washington D.C.,” Figures said. “And I always want to err on the side of experience. And I’ve been there.
“I know what it looks like to prioritize issues. I know what priorities look like in a White House. I know what priorities look like in a federal agency. I know what priorities look like in Congress. I know what the committees look like. I know what the members look like. I know what the staff looks like. I know what it’s like to work with them because I have been in the trenches with them working on almost every issue that we have discussed here tonight.
“At the end of the day, one luxury that we do not have is time. We need someone that can hit Washington running, that can hit the ground running full speed ahead.”
In October, a federal court approved a new Congressional map for Alabama that changed the 2nd District from one that was solidly Republican to one where a Democrat can win. The Black voting age population in the district is 49%. An analysis submitted to the court showed that Black-preferred candidates, Democrats, received more votes in the district than their Republican opponents in 16 of 17 recent elections.
The new map came after organizations and Black voters prevailed in their lawsuit that said the congressional map Alabama had used for decades, with marginal changes, violated the Voting Rights Act. It had six heavily white districts and one that was majority Black in a state where Black residents make up more than one-fourth of the population. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the decision.
A Democratic flip would be important nationally because Republicans hold a narrow 218 to 213 majority in the current Congress. But although the district was drawn to favor Democrats, turnout in the March 5 primary indicated the race will be close. Almost exactly the same number of Republicans voted in the primary as Democrats.
Daniels, who lives in Huntsville, was one of several candidates in the March 5 primary who lives outside the 2nd District. The constitution requires members of Congress to live in the state they represent, but not the district. Daniels grew up in Midway, which is in Bullock County in the 2nd District, and graduated from Bullock County High School. He said if he’s elected he will move his family and businesses to the district.
“I know this district because it’s where I’m from and I have continued to serve this district in the legislature as House Minority Leader,” Daniels said.
Figures, who moved back to his hometown to run for the office, said he thinks voters care about the residency issue.
“I think being from the district and being raised in the district, educated in the district, growing up in church in the district, I think it matters,” Figures said. “I think it’s something that voters do certainly care about significantly.”
The candidates have raised and spent similar amounts on their campaigns, according to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. Daniels had raised about $457,000 as of his last report, filed April 4. Figures has raised about $415,000 as of his report filed April 12. Both candidates received most of their contributions from individuals, as opposed to political committees.
However, Figures has received substantial help from a super PAC, or independent committee. Protect Progress PAC, has spent $2.6 million on ads supporting Figures and opposing Daniels.
Protect Progress PAC, formed in August 2023, advocates on behalf of companies involved in blockchain technology, which is a system businesses, including the cryptocurrency industry, use to store and share information. The PAC calls for “a clearer regulatory and legal framework” for the companies.
In a statement about the support of the Protect Progress PAC, Figures said he has no ties to the PAC or the industry it supports.
“Protect Progress is an outside organization and no candidate in this race can control how any outside organization spends its money — that’s why they’ve been deemed ‘independent’ by federal law,” Figures said.
“I do not have any sort of special relationship to the cryptocurrency industry or to Protect Progress. As Congressman, I would support the development of frameworks that address regulatory concerns around cryptocurrency and encourage reasonable regulation to protect consumers, investors and our economy.”