U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Birmingham, speaks at a meeting of the Congressional Black Caucus in September. Sewell won her eighth term in the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesdsay. (William J. Ford/Maryland Matters)
U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Birmingham, won her eighth term in Congress Tuesday, defeating Republican challenger Robin Litaker.
The Associated Press called the race for Sewell at about 9:30 p.m. Sewell had 77,248 votes (67.8%) in unofficial returns. Litaker, a retired educator, had 36,666 votes (32.2%).
At 9:48 p.m., 43% of votes were counted, according to the Associated Press.
A message was left with a spokesperson for Sewell Tuesday evening.
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Sewell, first elected to the U.S. House in 2010, has been Alabama’s single Democratic representative in that chamber throughout her tenure.
The 7th Congressional District, including Jefferson and Tuscaloosa counties and most of the Black Belt, was redrawn into a majority-minority district in 1992. The district was slightly redrawn last year as a court ordered the creation of a second congressional district where Black voters had a chance to elect their preferred leaders.
Sewell’s website highlights infrastructure and health care among her issues. She won praise from local leaders in the Black Belt in 2022 for helping secure money from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to address sewage issues in Lowndes County, according to the Montgomery Advertiser.
The congresswoman has also prioritized voting rights. She has sponsored the John Lewis Voting Rights Enhancement Act, which would restore provisions of the 1965 Voting Rights Act struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2013. In May, Sewell spoke against a Republican-sponsored bill aimed to prevent people who don’t have citizenship status from voting — which is already illegal — because it could burden eligible voters.
In the weeks leading up to the election, Sewell posted on social media about the impact of the Infrastructure Law, including removal of lead service lines in Selma.
Sewell also recently praised an executive order banning glock switches after a mass shooting in Birmingham.
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