MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The candidate count in Alabama’s newly drawn congressional District 2 continues to grow.
Alabama state Rep. Jeremy Gray, D-Opelika, announced Thursday that he is running for Congress, joining Democrat lawmakers state Rep. Napoleon Bracy of Prichard and state Sen. Kirk Hatcher of Montgomery. A number of other legislators are considering bids.
“It’s been a long time since people in that area had hope and had someone that really understood the issues in that area,” said Gray, who lives one county north of the district. “I’ve been a part of bringing resources to that community through legislation and through funding.”
Meanwhile, the first Republican candidate has qualified. Caroline Dobson, an attorney and Montgomery resident, is originally from Monroe County.
“It is time to give Washington, D.C. a good dose of Alabama common sense and go to battle against those on the far left who want to control how we use our property and what we do, think, and say,” Dobson said in a written announcement on Wednesday.
Federal judges last month selected new congressional district lines in Alabama after ruling the previous map likely violated the federal Voting Rights Act. The new map sets the stage for potentially flipping one U.S. House of Representatives seat from Republican to Democratic control and could lead to the election of two Black Congressional representatives to the state’s delegation for the first time.
The newly redrawn district stretches across south Alabama from the Mississippi border to the Georgia border, encompassing parts of Mobile, the capital city of Montgomery as well as rural areas. Black residents make up 48.7% of the voting age population, giving it a firm Democratic tilt.
Alabama Daily News’ Mary Sell contributed to this report.
