List of United States senators from Alabama
Wikipedia list article
Current delegation
Richard Shelby (R)
Tommy Tuberville (R)
Alabama was admitted to the Union on December 14, 1819. The state elects U.S. senators to Class 2 and Class 3. Its United States Senate seats were declared vacant from March 1861 to July 1868 due to its secession from the Union during the American Civil War. Alabama's current U.S. senators are Republicans Richard Shelby (since 1987) and Tommy Tuberville (since 2021).
List of senators
Living former senators
Class 2 U.S. senators belong to the electoral cycle that were first elected for two United States Congresses in the election of 1819; then the seat was contested again for the 18th, 21st and every three Congresses (six years) thereafter. Those seats in recent years have been contested in 2008, 2014, 2017 (special election) and 2020. The next election will be in 2026.
Class 3 U.S. senators belong to the electoral cycle that were first elected for three U.S. Congresses in the election of 1819; then the seat was contested again for the 19th, 22nd and every three Congresses (six years) thereafter. Those seats in recent years have been contested in 1998, 2004, 2010 and 2016. The next election will be in 2022.
Dates in office
Electoral history
William R. King Democratic-
Republican December 14, 1819 –
April 15, 1844 Elected in 1819. 1 16th 1 Elected in 1819.
Resigned. December 14, 1819 –
December 12, 1822 Democratic-
John Williams Walker
Elected to finish Walker's term.
Retired. December 12, 1822 –
March 3, 1825 Democratic-
Republican William Kelly
Re-elected in 1822. 2 18th
Jacksonian 19th 2 Elected in 1824 or 1825.
Died. March 4, 1825 –
January 24, 1826 Jacksonian
Henry H. Chambers
January 24, 1826 –
February 17, 1826 Vacant
Appointed to continue Chambers's term.
Successor elected. February 17, 1826 –
November 27, 1826 Jacksonian
Israel Pickens
Elected to finish Chambers's term.
Lost re-election. November 27, 1826 –
March 3, 1831 Jacksonian
John McKinley
Re-elected in 1828. 3 21st
22nd 3 Elected in 1831.
Lost re-election. March 4, 1831 –
Gabriel Moore
23rd Anti-Jacksonian
Democratic 25th 4 Elected in 1837.
Resigned to become a Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. March 4, 1837 –
April 22, 1837 Democratic
April 22, 1837 –
June 19, 1837 Vacant
Elected to finish McKinley's term.
Resigned. June 19, 1837 –
November 15, 1841 Democratic
Clement Comer Clay
Re-elected in 1840.
Resigned to become U.S. Minister to France. 5 27th
November 15, 1841 –
November 24, 1841 Vacant
Elected to finish Clay's term. November 24, 1841 –
June 16, 1848 Democratic
Arthur P. Bagby
28th 5 Re-elected in 1842.
Resigned to become U.S. Minister to Russia.
Vacant April 15, 1844 –
Dixon Hall Lewis Democratic April 22, 1844 –
October 24, 1848 Appointed to finish King's term.
Elected in 1847.
Died. 6 30th
June 16, 1848 –
July 1, 1848 Vacant
Appointed to continue Bagby's term.
Elected to finish Bagby's term. July 1, 1848 –
December 20, 1852 Democratic
William R. King
Vacant October 24, 1848 –
Benjamin Fitzpatrick Democratic November 25, 1848 –
November 30, 1849 Appointed to continue Lewis's term.
Successor elected.
31st 6 Re-elected in 1848 or 1849.
Resigned due to poor health.
Jeremiah Clemens Democratic November 30, 1849 –
March 3, 1853 Elected to finish Lewis's term.
Lost re-election.
December 20, 1852 –
January 14, 1853 Vacant
Appointed to continue King's term.
Elected November 28, 1853 [1] to finish King's term. January 14, 1853 –
March 3, 1855 Democratic
Benjamin Fitzpatrick
Vacant March 4, 1853 –
November 29, 1853 Legislature failed to elect. 7 33rd
Clement Claiborne Clay Democratic November 29, 1853 –
January 21, 1861 Elected late in 1853.
34th 7 Legislature failed to elect. March 4, 1855 –
Elected late.
Withdrew. [lower-alpha 1] November 26, 1855 –
January 21, 1861 Democratic
Withdrew. [lower-alpha 1] 8 36th
Vacant January 21, 1861 –
July 13, 1868 Civil War and Reconstruction Civil War and Reconstruction January 21, 1861 –
July 13, 1868 Vacant
37th 8
9 39th
Willard Warner Republican July 13, 1868 –
March 3, 1871 Elected in 1868 to finish vacant term.
Lost re-election. Elected in 1868 to finish vacant term. July 13, 1868 –
March 3, 1879 Republican
George E. Spencer
George Goldthwaite Democratic March 4, 1871 –
March 3, 1877 Elected in 1870.
Retired. 10 42nd
43rd 10 Re-elected in 1872.
Retired.
John Tyler Morgan Democratic March 4, 1877 –
June 11, 1907 Elected in 1876. 11 45th
46th 11 Elected in 1878.
George S. Houston
January 7, 1880 Vacant
Appointed to continue Houston's term.
Successor qualified. January 7, 1880 –
Luke Pryor
Elected to finish Houston's term. November 24, 1880 –
James L. Pugh
Re-elected in 1882. 12 48th
49th 12 Re-elected in 1884.
Re-elected in 1888. 13 51st
52nd 13 Re-elected in 1890.
Lost renomination. [2]
55th 14 Elected in 1897. [3] March 4, 1897 –
July 27, 1907 Democratic
Edmund Pettus
58th 15 Re-elected January 26, 1903.
Re-elected early in 1907, [4] [5] but died.
Re-elected January 22, 1907. [4] [5]
Died. 16 60th
Vacant June 11, 1907 –
John H. Bankhead Democratic June 18, 1907 –
March 1, 1920 Appointed to continue Morgan's term.
Elected July 16, 1907, to finish Morgan's term.
July 27, 1907 –
August 6, 1907 Vacant
Elected to finish Pettus's term. August 6, 1907 –
August 8, 1913 Democratic
Joseph F. Johnston
61st 16 Elected August 6, 1907, to next term.
Died.
Re-elected early January 17, 1911. 17 63rd
Henry D. Clayton (D) was appointed August 12, 1913, to continue the term, but his appointment was challenged and withdrawn.
Franklin P. Glass (D) was appointed November 17, 1913, to continue the term, but the Senate refused to seat him. [6] August 8, 1913 –
May 11, 1914 Vacant
Elected to finish Johnston's term.
Retired. May 11, 1914 –
Francis S. White
64th 17 Elected in 1914. March 4, 1915 –
Oscar Underwood
B. B. Comer Democratic March 5, 1920 –
November 2, 1920 Appointed to continue Bankhead's term.
James Thomas Heflin Democratic November 3, 1920 –
March 3, 1931 First elected to finish Bankhead's term.
Disqualified. 19 69th
August 19, 1937 Democratic
Hugo Black
John H. Bankhead II Democratic March 4, 1931 –
June 12, 1946 Elected in 1930. 20 72nd
Resigned to become a Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.
Appointed (by her husband, the Governor) to finish Black's term.
Resigned when her successor won the Democratic primary. August 20, 1937 –
Dixie Bibb Graves
Appointed to continue Graves's term.
Elected April 26, 1938 to finish Graves's term. January 11, 1938 –
January 3, 1969 Democratic
J. Lister Hill
George R. Swift Democratic June 15, 1946 –
John Sparkman Democratic November 6, 1946 –
January 3, 1979 Elected to finish Bankhead's term.
22 Re-elected in 1944.
91st 26 Elected in 1968. January 3, 1969 –
June 1, 1978 Democratic
Retired. 27 93rd
Appointed to continue her husband's term.
Lost nomination to finish her husband's term. June 8, 1978 –
November 7, 1978 Democratic
Maryon Pittman Allen
Elected to finish James Allen's term.
Lost renomination; resigned one day early to give his successor advantageous seniority. November 7, 1978 –
Donald Stewart
Howell Heflin Democratic January 3, 1979 –
January 3, 1997 Elected in 1978. 28 96th
Appointed to finish Stewart's term, having already been elected to the next term. January 2, 1981 –
January 3, 1987 Republican
Jeremiah Denton
100th 29 Elected in 1986. January 3, 1987 –
Retired. 30 102nd
103rd 30 Re-elected in 1992. Changed party in 1994 with the Republican Revolution.
November 9, 1994 –
Present Republican
Jeff Sessions Republican January 3, 1997 –
February 8, 2017 Elected in 1996. 31 105th
106th 31 Re-elected in 1998.
Re-elected in 2002. 32 108th
Resigned to become U.S. Attorney General. 34 114th
Luther Strange Republican February 9, 2017 –
January 3, 2018 Appointed to continue Sessions's term.
Lost nomination to finish Sessions's term.
Doug Jones Democratic January 3, 2018 –
January 3, 2021 Elected December 12, 2017 to finish Sessions's term.
Tommy Tuberville Republican January 3, 2021 –
Present Elected in 2020. 35 117th
118th 35 To be determined in the 2022 election.
To be determined in the 2026 election. 36 120th
Years in office
As of January 2021 [update] , there are four living former U.S. senators from Alabama. The most recent senator to die was Maryon Pittman Allen (served June–November 1978) on July 23, 2018. The most recently serving senator to die was Howell Heflin (served 1979–1997) on March 29, 2005.
Term of office
Date of birth (and age)
Donald Stewart November 7, 1978 – January 2, 1981 (1940-02-04) February 4, 1940 (age 80)
Jeff Sessions January 3, 1997 – February 8, 2017 (1946-12-24) December 24, 1946 (age 74)
Luther Strange February 9, 2017 – January 3, 2018 (1953-03-01) March 1, 1953 (age 67)
Doug Jones January 3, 2018 – January 3, 2021 (1954-05-04) May 4, 1954 (age 66)
List of United States Representatives from Alabama
United States congressional delegations from Alabama
1 2 Clay and Fitzpatrick along with several other senators announced they were withdrawing from the Senate on January 21, 1861, due to their states' decisions to secede from the Union. Clay's seat was declared vacant by the Senate on March 14, 1861, but Fitzpatrick's was vacant because his term ended on March 4, 1861.
The United States Senate elections of 1908 and 1909 were held to determine the winners of the 31 class 3 Senate seats up for election, as well as various special elections to fill vacancies or confirm appointments. Until the 17th Amendment, which passed in 1913, Senators were elected by state legislatures. However, some states had already begun direct elections during this time. Oregon pioneered direct election and experimented with different measures over several years until it succeeded in 1907. Soon after, Nebraska followed suit and laid the foundation for other states to adopt measures reflecting the people's will. By 1912, as many as 29 states elected senators either as nominees of their party's primary or in conjunction with a general election. The Republicans lost two seats overall.
The United States Senate elections of 1866 and 1867 were elections that saw the Republican Party gain two seats in the United States Senate as several of the Southern States were readmitted during Reconstruction, enlarging their majority.
↑ Journal of the Senate of the State of Alabama. p. 82–83.
↑ Schlup, Leonard C.; Ryan, James Gilbert (February 16, 2018). Historical Dictionary of the Gilded Age. M.E. Sharpe. ISBN 9780765621061 – via Google Books.
↑ "Senator Pettus Re-elected". The New York Times . January 27, 1903. p. 3.
1 2 "NO CHOICE IN RHODE ISLAND". The New York Times . January 23, 1907. p. 1.
1 2 The Tribune Almanac and Political Register 1908. New York: The Tribune Association. 1908. p. 258.
↑ Byrd, p. 340.
Byrd, Robert C. (October 1, 1993). Wolff, Wendy (ed.). The Senate, 1789-1989: Historical Statistics, 1789-1992. United States Senate Historical Office (volume 4 Bicentennial ed.). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. ISBN 9780160632563.
Alabama's current delegation to the United States Congress
(ordered by district)
Jerry Carl (R)
Barry Moore (R)
Mike Rogers (R)
Robert Aderholt (R)
Mo Brooks (R)
Gary Palmer (R)
Terri Sewell (D)
United States senators from Alabama
C. Claiborne Clay
Bankhead Sr.
J. Heflin
Bankhead Jr.
Sparkman
H. Heflin
Tuberville
C. Comer Clay
Bagby
M. Allen
Lists of United States congressional delegations
California (H, S)
Nebraska (H, S)
Nevada (H, S)
New Jersey (H, S)
New York (H, S)
Wisconsin (H, S)
Dakota Territory
Orleans Territory
Southwest Territory
Lists of former House members
List of former senators