Alabama Senate GOP primary headed to run-off

Former Capitol Hill staffer Katie Britt will face six-term House lawmaker Mo Brooks in a runoff election after neither candidate won a majority of primary voters on Tuesday.

After nearly 80% of the vote had been tallied, Mrs. Britt was leading with nearly 46% of the vote, placing well ahead of Mr. Brooks, who had garnered nearly 29%. A third candidate, Army veteran Michael Durant, trailed the two with about 23%.  

Mrs. Britt and Mr. Brooks will face off again in a June 21 runoff. The victor will run in the November election against Democrat and pastor Will Boyd, 50, who easily won his party primary on Tuesday.

The general election race is rated as solid Republican by non-partisan analysts.

Mrs. Britt served as chief of staff to Sen. Richard Shelby, who is retiring and has endorsed Mrs. Britt to succeed him.

In addition to working for Mr. Shelby on Capitol Hill, she served recently as president and CEO of the Alabama Business Council and describes herself as “an effective leader who is more interested in delivering results than talking in circles.”

Her husband, Wesley, was a star offensive lineman for the state’s beloved University of Alabama football team and he also played for the New England Patriots.

Mr. Brooks, a staunch conservative who has served in the House since 2010, had been a loyal ally to former President Donald Trump, voting against certification of the 2020 presidential election, which Mr. Trump and others said was rife with irregularities and fraud. He continues to support the Trump agenda.

But Mr. Brooks fell into the unique position of being unendorsed by Mr. Trump after he started falling in the polls.

Mr. Trump said he withdrew his endorsement because Mr. Brooks had gone “woke” by telling voters it was time to move past the 2020 election. The former president continues to say Mr. Biden won unfairly due to fraud and irregularities.

Mr. Brooks supports Mr. Trump’s view that the election was illegitimate, but does not want to overturn the results.

After Mr. Trump withdrew his endorsement on March 23, Mr. Brooks said that he had rejected repeated requests from the former president to overturn the 2020 results and reinstall him in the White House.

In recent weeks since losing the Trump endorsement, Mr. Brooks had recovered in the polls, surging into a near-tie for the lead, despite Mr. Trump’s popularity among Alabama voters.