2026 Alabama's 6th Congressional District Election
Compare candidates’ positions, polling, and sourced race updates.
About this race
Alabama's 6th Congressional District, covering central Alabama and the suburbs south of Birmingham, holds its general election on November 3, 2026, after mid-decade redistricting voided the original May 19 primary and triggered a special primary on August 11. Incumbent Republican Gary Palmer, first elected in 2014 and seeking a seventh term, won the GOP nomination over Case Dixon, while Democrat Maurice Mercer, a former Pelham city councilman, won the Democratic primary over Ashtyn Kennedy, Keith Pilkington, and Jacob Bouma-Sims.
The district remains solidly Republican (Cook PVI R+17 after redistricting, down from R+20), and the race pits Palmer's conservative platform — repealing the Affordable Care Act, cutting EPA regulations, and backing gun rights and abortion restrictions — against Mercer's emphasis on raising the minimum wage. The contest is part of a special-election cycle in four Alabama districts reshaped after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the state to use its 2023 legislatively-drawn congressional map.
Candidates
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Gary Palmer is the incumbent U.S. Representative for Alabama's 6th congressional district, first elected in 2014 and now seeking a seventh term. He previously served as president of the Alabama Policy Institute, a conservative think tank, and chaired the House Republican Policy Committee from 2019 to 2025. Trump-endorsed Palmer won the August 11, 2026 Republican primary with about 86% of the vote, defeating Case Dixon, and will face Democrat Maurice Mercer in the November 3 general election.
Maurice Mercer is a Democrat running for U.S. House in Alabama's 6th congressional district. A former Pelham City Council member who served three terms, including as Council President from 2020 to 2025, he was the first African-American elected to that body and works as an account executive for a Fortune 500 company. Mercer won the Democratic nomination in the August 11, 2026 special primary with about 64% of the vote and will face Republican incumbent Gary Palmer in the November 3 general election.
Forecast
Gary Palmer favored
Gary Palmer: 97% modeled win probability with a +32.0 pts estimated margin
About this research
Data compiled from public sources and analyzed using AI. Last updated August 27, 2026. Visit candidate websites for the most current information.