MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer and Democrat Maurice Mercer punched their tickets to the general election in the race for Alabama’s 6th Congressional District during Tuesday’s special primary election.
Trump-endorsed Palmer, who is running for his seventh term, earned 16,199 votes, or 86.15%, according to unofficial primary night returns from the secretary of state. Republican challenger and physical therapist assistant Case Dixon got 2,604 votes, or 13.85%.
Palmer thanked his supporters for his decisive victory on social media, urging them to “lock arms” to help Republicans keep the U.S. House and Senate.
Mercer, a former Pelham City councilman, beat out three other Democrats in a crowded primary with 3,850 votes, or 67.17%. Content creator Ashtyn Kennedy followed Mercer with 1,204 votes, or 21%. Jacob Bouma-Sims and Keith Pilkington came in third and fourth with 366 and 312 votes, respectively.
The district remains solidly Republican after redistricting, during which the boundary lines in Elmore and Jefferson Counties slightly shifted.
Cook Political Report’s Partisan Voting Index marks the 6th District as R+17, meaning its two-party vote share was 17 points more Republican in the 2020 and 2024 presidential elections than the country as a whole. Before redistricting, the district was R+20.
The 6th District was one of four with a rescheduled primary election due to redistricting.
As was widely expected, Tuesday’s election had extremely low voter turnout, with 4.52% of registered voters casting a ballot as of 10:00 p.m.
The general election is Nov. 3.