Dick Brewbaker, Greg Albritton will seek GOP nomination in 2nd Congressional District

One current Republican state senator and one former one will seek the Republican nomination in the Alabama’s new 2nd Congressional District.

Former state Sen. Dick Brewbaker, R-Pike Road, and Sen. Greg Albritton, R-Atmore, said Monday they will run for the seat, which runs from northern Mobile County across the Black Belt to the Georgia line.

Brewbaker cited the rising costs of living in the district as some of the most pressing issues for him.

“Working families are getting slaughtered right now and mainly because of the policies of this government,” he said. 

Albritton, first elected to the Alabama Senate in 2014, cited issues around transportation and commercial and economic development in a Monday phone interview.

“When you’re talking about the resources that goes to other areas, the rest of the country in particularly, and Alabama, our district, we’ve got the Mobile River Bridge that we’re struggling to make work,” he said. “We’ve got Highway 84’s , 45’s and several others that need attention here.”

Albritton’s candidacy was first reported by Alabama Daily News.

The entry of the candidates will create two competitive primaries in the new district, expected to lean Democratic.

Brewbaker served in the Alabama Senate from 2010 to 2018, after serving in the Alabama House from 2002 to 2010. He amassed a conservative voting record in both chambers, but was an outspoken member of the Senate, threatening to shut down the chamber in 2017 unless a bill that would mandate insurance coverage for autism therapies was brought to a vote. He was the chair of the Senate Education Policy Committee.

Brewbaker was the longtime owner of a Montgomery car dealership, but he sold the business in January, according to WSFA.

Albritton, an attorney, has historically sponsored bills that would legalize gambling in the state. He is the chair of the Senate Finance and Taxation General Fund committee.

Albritton said that he already has experience representing large parts of the district.

“ I know the economy of the region,” he said. “That’s my greatest asset. That I can have is the the proven record I have of trying to represent the district in a proper way and knowing what the needs are and knowing the people that are suffering from those problems.”

He said he plans to formally announce his candidacy on Wednesday.

A federal court last month approved a new congressional map for the state with a new 2nd Congressional District that has a Black Voting Age Population of 48.7%. Because of racially-polarized voting patterns in the state, the district is seen as one where a Democrat can win. 

Rep. Napoleon Bracy, D-Prichard; Rep. Jeremy Gray, D-Opelika and Sen. Kirk Hatcher, D-Montgomery, and, will seek the Democratic nomination. Democrats Terrell Anderson, Phyllis Harvey-Hall and Austin Vigue have also registered with the Federal Election Commission. 

House Minority Leader Anthony Daniels, D-Huntsville and Sen. Merika Coleman, D-Pleasant Grove, are also considering entry into the race. 

Attorney Caroleene Dobson is the only declared candidate on the Republican side.