U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer, R-Hoover (left), a five-term incumbent, faces Democratic nominee Elizabeth Anderson in next month’s election in the 6th Congressional District, taking in suburban Birmingham and much of central Alabama. (Left: Office of U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer; Right: Courtesy Elizabeth Anderson)
The race in Alabama’s 6th Congressional District features a five-term Republican incumbent and a Democratic newcomer.
Business executive and Democratic nominee Elizabeth Anderson is challenging U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer, R-Hoover, in a district whose district includes much of suburban Birmingham and stretches south into Bibb, Chilton and Coosa counties. The district is rated solidly Republican by the Cook Political Report.
“We had not had anybody run against Gary Palmer since 2018, so since we did not have anybody who had qualified yet on the qualifying deadline, I said, ‘Well, I guess I will do it,’” Anderson said.
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Anderson, who lives in Shelby County, works as the CEO of Birmingham-based LunarLab. The company is a benefit corporation, a company that considers its impact on the community and the environment. It designs software and establishes strategy for companies of “all sizes and all industries,” according to Anderson, including health care, insurance and banking companies.
Anderson grew up in Childersburg, Alabama and graduated from the University of Alabama with a music degree before starting her career in the technology industry.
Multiple requests to Palmer’s campaign for an interview were unsuccessful. Palmer, first elected to Congress in 2014, had previously served as president of the Alabama Policy Institute, a conservative think tank.
Palmer defeated Gerrick Wilkins of Vestavia Hills and Ken McFeeters of north Shelby County in the primary in March.
The congressman grew up in Hackleburg, Alabama, a small town in the northwest part of the state. He graduated from the University of Alabama with a bachelor’s degree in operations management.
Palmer is strongly conservative. In 2022, he praised the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision striking down federal abortion rights protections, saying at the time that the ruling “ends nearly five decades of poorly decided precedent that was clearly outside constitutional bounds.” Palmer in the past has pushed measures to deny Planned Parenthood funding and has sponsored measures that claim, falsely, that abortion are performed just before birth. Existing laws already prohibit infanticide.
Anderson criticized him for voting against the Right to Contraception Act in 2022, a bill that would have made it a right for people to have access to birth control. All six of Alabama’s Republican House members voted against the measure.
Anderson is campaigning on protecting women’s reproductive rights, including access to abortion care and in vitro fertilization (IVF) services. That issue became a lightning rod for constituents, not only in the state but nationally, after the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that in a case that embryos should be afforded the same standing as infants.
“In my view, abortion is absolutely health care,” Anderson said. “We have to take the life of the mother into consideration, and we have to protect the right of people to make their own choice about their bodies. That is fundamental to everything we do.”
Anderson said she is concerned with the number of maternity clinics closing, as well as rural hospitals closing throughout the state.
“Alleviating poverty is a major issue for me,” Anderson said. “I grew up below the poverty line myself, and the way that I was able to get out of poverty was through using federal services, safety net services.”
She supports free and reduced lunch programs, affordable housing initiatives as well as paid sick and family leave.
Palmer in 2017 voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act and said he supports giving Medicaid to the states as block grants. He has expressed support for federal work requirements for welfare recipients. Palmer has also supported immigration restrictions.
The congressman briefly entered the race for House Speaker last fall but withdrew after two days, saying there was broad consensus from other candidates on issues he considered important. He voted against a bill in September to keep the government running.
The two candidates raised about the same amount of money over the summer, though Palmer has an overall advantage in cash on hand. incumbent representative has a fundraising lead over the challenger. From July 1 to Sept. 30, Palmer raised $115,308 and spent $117,649, finishing with $220,082 on hand. Anderson raised $107,098 during that period and spent $53,240, finishing with $64,787.
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