May 24, 2022 - Politics & Policy

Alabama's GOP Senate primary heads to runoff

Herb Scribner

Katie Britt and Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala). Photos: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call and Sean Gardner/Getty Images

The race for the Republican nomination for Alabama's U.S. Senate seat is headed to a runoff between Katie Britt and Rep. Mo Brooks, the AP reported.

Why it matters: The contest for retiring Sen. Richard Shelby's open seat became one of the more prominent primary elections, after Brooks received — and then lost — President Trump's endorsement.

State of play: No candidate won more than 50% of Tuesday’s vote, leading to a runoff on June 21.

The backdrop: Brooks, Katie Britt and Mike Durant (whose experiences were chronicled in "Black Hawk Down") were all seen as front-runners in the ongoing race.

Candidates Lillie Boddie, Karla M. Dupriest and Jake Schafer muddied the waters, per AP.

The big picture: A recent poll from the Alabama Daily News and Gray TV showed both Britt and Brooks on the rise in the Senate race.

Britt is considered an establishment candidate, having served as chief of staff to Shelby, while Brooks is a staunch House Freedom Caucus member who pushed to overturn the 2020 election results.
He fell out of favor with Trump after telling a rally "put that behind you" referring to the election and "look forward" to 2022, resulting in boos from the audience.

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Alabama's GOP Senate primary heads to runoff

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