WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Shomari Figures took the oath of office Friday to officially become Alabama’s representative for the newly redrawn 2nd Congressional District and the second Democrat in the state’s delegation.
The Mobile native was sworn in inside the House chamber after Republican Mike Johnson of Louisiana was reelected as Speaker. Alabama’s six other representatives were also sworn in Friday afternoon for the start of their next terms in the 119th Congress.
“Walking out on that floor it all comes crashing down at once so it was a very humbling feeling and one that we are certainly grateful to have,” Figures told Alabama Daily News.
Democrats in November captured the AL-2 seat that’s belonged to Republicans most of the last 60 years. In 2023, a federal court imposed a new congressional map after finding that the 2021 congressional map enacted by the Legislature violated the Voting Rights Act for diluting Black voters’ political power.
Figures’ wife and other family members joined him to commemorate his first day. Friends, former colleagues, and Alabama residents greeted him in his new House office during a reception before the swearing-in.
“It’s humbling and its also I think reassuring of the work that has to be done and reassuring of the interests that are in the state of Alabama when you see people coming from a variety of sectors, a variety of industries, a variety of backgrounds all coming to wish you well and to get to know you,” Figures said.
📍 Mobile Represented in Washington
This week, Mobile Chamber President & CEO Bradley Byrne traveled to Washington, D.C., to attend the swearing-in of Shomari Figures as Alabama’s newest member of Congress. pic.twitter.com/tHGGZ9UqZW
— Mobile Chamber (@MobileChamber) January 3, 2025
Sen. Katie Britt also stopped by Figures’ office to congratulate him and highlight the work she hopes to accomplish in Congress together, despite their political and policy differences.
“The places where we know that we can come together, things like working on the Mobile port, working to make sure that Maxwell Air Force Base continues to thrive,” Britt told ADN.
Figures joins fellow Democratic Rep. Terri Sewell, changing the makeup of Alabama’s seven member delegation to five Republicans and two Democrats in the House.
The congressman also participated in a ceremonial swearing-in for the 62 members of the Congressional Black Caucus Friday morning. Sewell, who serves as the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, highlighted the group’s commitment to supporting Black Americans.
“Today, we renew our pledge to fight racism where it exists, to weed out inequities in health care, the criminal justice system, education, voter access and so many rights and benefits that are part and parcel of what it means to be Americans,” Sewell said at the event.
Figures is no stranger to Washington having previously served in the Department of Justice under Attorney General Merrick Garland and in the Senate office of former Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio.
“Stepping out there on that floor, it’s a moment where you get an opportunity to sort of take a few minutes to sit back and think about all that it took for you to get here,” he said. “All the people that made the sacrifices for you both presently in your life as well as those who crossed those bridges before you historically.”
Figures has not yet received committee assignments, but he recently said he is interested in the Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, the Armed Services Committee and the Agriculture Committee.