Jerry Carl (R), Rhett Marques (R), Joshua McKee (R), and three others are running in the Republican primary for Alabama's 1st Congressional District on May 19, 2026. As of January 2026, Carl, Marques, and McKee led in fundraising and local media attention.

Incumbent Barry Moore (R) is running for U.S. Senate rather than seeking re-election. AL.com's Howard Koplowitz and Hannah Denham wrote that "[winning] the race is tantamount to election in the heavily red district, which stretches from the Wiregrass region of Alabama to parts of Mobile and Baldwin counties." As of January 2026, major election forecasters rated the general election as Solid/Safe Republican.

Carl is a former member of the U.S. House. Carl represented the 1st District from 2021–2025 before losing to Moore 52%–48% in the 2024 primary after redistricting placed the two in the same district. He also served on the Mobile County Commission for eight years. Carl's campaign website describes him as "an outsider, a job creator, and a businessman looking to get things done."

Marques was elected to the Alabama House in 2018 and is the owner and operator of an automotive service center. Marques describes himself as "a proven conservative fighter with a strong record of putting Alabama’s families first and protecting our values." Marques' campaign says he "is also routinely called upon to bring Republicans together to support conservative bills...His ability to unify will be critical to the success of the geographically unique district."

McKee is a veteran of the U.S. Army who served in the Green Berets. After leaving the Army, McKee worked for General Motors and Hewlett-Packard. McKee says he is running "to bring mission-focused leadership to Washington, reform broken systems like the VA, and restore the American Dream for Alabama families." McKee says he has "battled America’s enemies overseas – now I’m ready to defeat the enemies of freedom here at home."

Also running in the primary are James Dees (R), James Richardson (R), and Austin Sidwell (R).

If no candidate wins more than 50% of votes, the top two finishers will advance to a June 16 runoff.