Alabama State Representative Rhett Marques, R-District 91, has announced that he will be running for U.S. Congress as he seeks the 2026 Republican nomination for Alabama’s 1st Congressional District.
“I’m a proven conservative fighter with a strong record of putting Alabama’s families first and protecting our values. In Congress, I will be a strong champion for hardworking Alabamians to help President Trump advance his agenda and reverse four years of failed Biden economic policies,” Marques stated in his official announcement. “While President Trump was providing tax relief to Americans with the”One Big Beautiful Bill,” I was working on the state level in the Alabama Legislature to slash the state taxes on groceries, eliminate the state tax on diapers and baby supplies that are critical for young families, and implement a substantial tax relief package for our seniors. That is the same commitment to helping Alabamians from the Wiregrass to the coast that I will take to D.C. to help President Trump pass bills that truly help working Americans.”
Marques—who has served two terms in the Alabama State Legislature since 2018—will be running to represent the entirety of Baldwin, Coffee, Covington, Dale, Escambia, Geneva, Henry and Houston counties, as well as parts of Mobile County, in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“I am proud to have been born and raised in Baldwin County, and I’m very close to my family who still live there today. I am also proud to live in the Wiregrass and to have raised my girls in Coffee County,” Marques said. “I have a love for the First Congressional District that lies in my passion for and understanding of the Wiregrass region where I live today and for the coastal area where I was born and where my roots run deep. That combination uniquely prepares me to unify this district and represent the entirety of Alabama’s first congressional from a place of first-hand understanding and a passion for the entire area – from the peanut fields to the beaches and everything in between.”
Marques’s campaign describes the state legislator as a “reliable and hardworking conservative” and a “staunch supporter of Alabama’s family farmers and local Main Streets.”
“Marques is also routinely called upon to bring Republicans together to support conservative bills,” the campaign notes. “His ability to unify will be critical to the success of the geographically unique district. Marques was raised in Spanish Fort, AL, and graduated from Fairhope High School in the district’s coastal region. He raised his family and owned a small business in Enterprise which is located in the Wiregrass.”
Marques will join the field of conservatives looking to succeed U.S. Representative Barry Moore, R-Alabama, in representing Alabama’s 1st Congressional District as Moore runs for U.S. Senate in 2026.
That field currently includes former Republican Congressman Jerry Carl, who served two terms in Washington before losing his seat to Moore in 2024 after redistricting placed the two incumbents in the same district, and political newcomer Joshua McKee, a 25-year Army Special Forces veteran.
The Republican primary will be held on May 26, 2026. As one of the most reliably Republican congressional districts in the nation with a partisan voting index of R+27, whoever wins the GOP primary for the First Congressional District will be strongly favored in November’s general election.
