Democratic candidate for Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District Shomari Figures took center stage Thursday night at Democratic National Convention in Chicago, elevating the former Obama and Biden administration official to the national spotlight.
“Good evening America, and hello sweet home Alabama!” Figures shouted to a crowd of tens of thousands of delegates, volunteers and Democratic Party supporters crowded together at the United Center.
Lasting all but two minutes, Figures gave a brief speech just ahead of Vice President and now Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, a prime-time speaking slot party leaders hope will help secure Figures’ victory in November against his Republican opponent Caroleene Dobson.
“I am running for Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District, the district that gave America the Tuskegee Airmen, Rosa Parks, Fred Gray, and it is the birth place of the civil rights movement in Montgomery, Alabama… and of course, this district is home to Mr. good trouble himself, Congressman John Lewis,” Figures said.
Figures also gave a shoutout to his mother, Alabama Sen. Vivian Figures, D-Mobile, who could be seen in the audience recording her son’s speech.
“My pathway to this stage was paved by a legacy of fighters, fighters that include my mother, Alabama Sen. Vivian Figures, who is here at here 11th DNC, and it also includes my late father, Michael Figures, who was also a state senator and civil rights lawyer who sued the Klan into bankruptcy,” he continued.
In his first mention of policy, Figures championed a bill sponsored by U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell, the only democrat in Alabama’s congressional delegation. Known as the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, the bill, which has been unsuccessfully introduced four times, would mandate that states with a high number of voting rights violations would be required to acquire federal approval before enacting changes to election laws.
In essence, the bill would restore federal oversight to state election law changes that was stripped away in 2013 following the United States Supreme Court decision on Shelby County v. Holder. Figures, speaking to an energetic crowd, pledged that Harris would sign the bill into law were she to win the election.
“All of us owe a debt to courageous freedom fighters, both known and unknown, a debt that can never be repaid, but what we can do is ensure that the work of those fighters that came before us continues, and that our sacred right to vote is always protected,” Figures said.
“Kamala Harris gets this, she’s working to protect our freedoms every single day, and that’s why she will sign into law the John Lewis Voting Rights Act once it is introduced again by Congresswoman Terri Sewell.”
In response to Figures’ speech, Drew Dickson, Dobson’s campaign spokesperson, told Alabama Daily News that he had neglected to touch on more substantive topics such as immigration and inflation.
“Shomari Figures’ DNC speech didn’t mention the skyrocketing inflation, open borders, high gas and grocery prices, retail crime, street violence, and fentanyl epidemic that he, Biden, and Harris created,” Dickson said Thursday. “We can stop inflation and fix our nation with Caroleene Dobson in AL-CD2.”
The general election will be held Nov. 5. The voter registration deadline to participate is Oct. 21, and the last day to apply for an absentee ballot by mail, Oct. 29, and in person, Oct. 31.