BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Four seats on the Alabama State Board of Education are on Tuesday’s general election ballot, with Republicans and Democrats competing for three of them.
The contested races are in Districts 2, 6 and 8. Democratic incumbent Yvette Richardson is unopposed in District 4.
The eight-member board establishes statewide education policies, adopts academic standards and textbooks and appoints the state superintendent of education. Board members serve four-year terms. Odd-numbered districts will be elected again in 2028.
Campaign finance figures are from the Alabama Secretary of State’s reporting system for the 2026 election cycle. The data was retrieved Oct. 31.
Related: Three school-related amendments on Alabama’s November ballot: What they would do
District 2
Republican incumbent Tracie West, first elected to the board in 2018, faces Democrat Jamie McCurry.
District 2 includes 13 counties in eastern and southeastern Alabama: Cleburne, Clay, Randolph, Tallapoosa, Chambers, Lee, Russell, Barbour, Coffee, Dale, Henry, Geneva and Houston.
West has reported $55,630 in monetary contributions and $59,800 in expenditures. Her campaign had $10,699 in cash on hand.
McCurry has reported $1,885 in monetary contributions and $1,198 in expenditures, with $688 remaining.
District 4
Democratic incumbent Yvette Richardson, first elected in 2010, is seeking a fifth four-year term and faces no Republican opponent.
District 4 includes Pickens, Greene, Hale and Bibb counties, along with portions of Tuscaloosa and Jefferson counties.
Richardson has reported $10,000 in monetary contributions and $2,151 in expenditures, with $7,849 in cash on hand.
District 6
Republican Cathi Bradford and Democrat Angela Morgan are running for the seat currently held by Republican Marie Manning, who lost her bid for reelection in the Republican primary.
District 6 covers much of northeastern Alabama, including Cullman, Marshall, Etowah, Blount, St. Clair, Calhoun and Cherokee counties, along with most of Talladega County and portions of neighboring counties.
Bradford has reported $63,061 in monetary contributions and $60,717 in expenditures. Her campaign also reported $9,639 in other receipts, with $9,983 in cash on hand.
Morgan confirmed to Alabama Daily News that she has not raised any campaign money and therefore has not filed campaign finance reports.
District 8
Republican Emily Jones and Democrat Shatika Armstrong are vying for the seat held by Republican Wayne Reynolds, who is not seeking reelection.
District 8 covers much of Alabama’s northernmost region, including Madison and Jackson counties and portions of Limestone and DeKalb counties.
Jones has reported $51,715 in monetary contributions and $40,726 in expenditures, with $10,989 in cash on hand.
Armstrong has reported $41,377 in monetary contributions and $23,565 in expenditures, with $18,084 remaining.
William Matthews, who lost the District 8 Republican runoff to Jones in June, reported $119,420 in monetary contributions and $144,420 in expenditures – more spending than any of the other State Board candidates during the 2026 election cycle.
The general election is Tuesday, Nov. 3. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.