WASHINGTON — The National Republican Congressional Committee added Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District to its target list Monday after redistricting made the seat more favorable for Republicans.
The House Republicans’ campaign arm aims to unseat Rep. Shomari Figures, D-Mobile, this year in the new 2nd District, where President Donald Trump would have won by 14 points in the 2024 election.
“Since coming to Congress, Democrat Shomari Figures has voted against Alabama values, siding with his far-left party to push their extreme agenda of high taxes, open borders, and men competing in women’s sports,” NRCC Spokesman Reilly Richardson said in a statement. “This November, Republicans are going to flip AL-02 red and deliver Alabamians the commonsense leadership they deserve.”
On the other side, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has already added Figures to its Frontline incumbents list, showing its commitment to providing resources and support to the congressman in his fight to keep the seat blue.
Alabama’s 2nd District is one of seven additional districts announced Monday that the NRCC will target this cycle, which includes districts in states that have redistricted in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling that weakened the Voting Rights Act.
In total, the GOP campaign arm is targeting 36 Democratic-held seats in 2026 to flip them red.
In the general election, Figures is set to face one of six Republican candidates vying for the nomination in the Aug. 11 special primary.
State Rep. Rhett Marques, R-Enterprise, who has the backing of Trump and Sen. Katie Britt, is the likely frontrunner in the GOP field. He’ll be on next month’s ballot against Hampton Harris, Christian Horn, David Matthews, Joshua McKee, and James Richardson.
Recently, the Cook Political Report also highlighted how the 2nd District could be a competitive race this year, shifting the seat from solid Republican to likely Republican.
In the wake of the redistricting battles, Erin Covey with the Cook Political Report told Alabama Daily News last month that, “There’s just much higher enthusiasm on the Democratic side than there is on the Republican side.”
So, should he win the nomination, Marques’ ability to bring GOP voters to the polls will be important, she said.
Marques has a significant fundraising lead over all the other 2nd District Republican candidates. He has nearly $450,000 cash on hand as of the end of June. Figures has about $656,000 in the bank.