//Run for office · Alabama

How to run for local office in Alabama

Alabama sells its voter file for a penny a name with vote history and phone numbers, has no early voting, and holds city elections in late August on a four-year cycle; Montgomery and others vote August 24, 2027.

Facts checked against official sources · September 9, 2026

Alabama runs separate local calendars. County commissions, county boards of education, sheriffs and probate judges are partisan and ride the state cycle: party primaries in the spring of even years (March 7, 2028) and the November general. Municipal elections are run by the city itself on a Tuesday in late August of the city's election year, with a runoff four weeks later, and cities are spread across a four-year cycle: Huntsville, Auburn, Bessemer and Gadsden voted August 25, 2026; Montgomery, Mountain Brook, Scottsboro and Talladega vote August 24, 2027.

Campaign finance is the one thing that is fully centralized. Since August 2023 every candidate, including municipal candidates, files Fair Campaign Practices Act reports electronically with the Secretary of State once past $1,000, and the FCPA sets no dollar cap on what an individual or PAC may give a candidate. Voting is election-day only, with excuse-required absentee ballots and no early voting, so turnout work concentrates on one day and the absentee universe is small.

Election authority: Alabama Secretary of State, Elections Division
Voter file: Public record — anyone can obtain it · **$0.01 per voter record** for an electronic copy, with no minimum fee and no extra charge for additional data fields (Secretary of State fee schedule on the request form, authorized by Code of Alabama 17-4-38). A 20,000-voter city council district costs $200. Printed copies are $1 per page; the online purchase portal charges $0.01 per record plus 2.5 percent, with a $1 minimum. No refunds after delivery.
Campaign finance: FCPA electronic filing system (fcpa.alabamavotes.gov) (Alabama Secretary of State, Elections Division (Fair Campaign Practices Act))
How voters vote: In person, with excuse-required absentee voting
Registration deadline: 15 days before the election (Code of Alabama 17-3-50, per NCSL; Huntsville lists August 10, 2026 for its August 25 election). Register online, by mail or at the county Board of Registrars; there is no same-day registration.
Local offices: County offices (commission, board of education, sheriff, probate judge, revenue commissioner, coroner, constable) are partisan with party primaries and runoffs. Municipal elections are run by the city without party primaries: you qualify with the municipal clerk rather than a party, and a runoff four weeks later decides races without a majority (Huntsville: August 25, 2026 election, September 22, 2026 runoff).

Who runs elections in Alabama

Alabama Secretary of State, Elections Division The Elections Division keeps the statewide voter registration list and sells it, certifies candidates for state offices, publishes the FCPA candidate filing guide and filing calendars, and runs the online FCPA campaign finance system that every candidate in the state now uses. County candidates qualify with their party or petition the probate judge; municipal candidates qualify with the city clerk. You will use the Secretary of State for the voter list, for FCPA committee registration and reports, and for the election cycle chart.

In each of the 67 counties the Board of Registrars registers voters and maintains the county list, the Judge of Probate is the chief county election official who accepts independent petitions and certifies county ballots, the Absentee Election Manager (usually the Circuit Clerk) handles absentee applications and ballots, and county officials run election day. Municipal elections are separate: the city clerk accepts statements of candidacy and the municipality appoints its own election officials, working from the Secretary of State's municipal poll worker guide. The Secretary of State's City-County Lookup lists the registrars, probate judges, circuit clerks and absentee election managers for every county.

Getting the Alabama voter file

The voter file is the list of every registered voter, with the fields a campaign needs to target: address, party where the state records it, and vote history. In Alabama it comes from Alabama Secretary of State, Elections Division (voter registration information request).

Access: Public record — anyone can obtain it
Cost: **$0.01 per voter record** for an electronic copy, with no minimum fee and no extra charge for additional data fields (Secretary of State fee schedule on the request form, authorized by Code of Alabama 17-4-38). A 20,000-voter city council district costs $200. Printed copies are $1 per page; the online purchase portal charges $0.01 per record plus 2.5 percent, with a $1 minimum. No refunds after delivery.
Format: ASCII text (tab-delimited) or Microsoft Excel, delivered by email or thumb drive; paper printouts also available. You tick the fields you want on the order form.
Vote history: Included
Phone numbers: Included where on file
Updated: Confirm with Alabama Secretary of State, Elections Division (voter registration information request)

Who can get it: Anyone may submit the voter registration information request form. It asks for your name, organization and the county, city or district you want; the Secretary of State quotes the cost before filling the order (authorized by Code of Alabama 17-4-38).

Permitted use: The request form states no use restriction. Campaigns, parties and vendors buy the same list; the Secretary of State's public inspection rules for voter registration information govern access.

County option: You order by county, city, district or any combination on the same form (county precinct, county commission district, county school district, municipality, municipal ward, city council district, city school district and fire district are all selectable), so buy the city or district you are running in rather than the state.

Selectable fields: full name, active or inactive status, residence and mailing address, phone number (as available), date of birth, registration date, last election voted, complete voter history, race, gender, and every district assignment from congressional to fire district (request form).
The Secretary of State's online purchase portal is linked from the Alabama Votes hub as 'Purchase Voter List' and is the fastest route for a county or city file; Boards of Registrars also keep the county list.
Specify active versus inactive voters and the exact districts before approving the quote; the Secretary of State will not refund a list once delivered.

Whatever file you get, Culper imports it as a CSV and maps the columns for you. See how to read a voter file for what the fields mean.

Filing to run for local office in Alabama

There are three doors onto an Alabama local ballot. Partisan county candidates qualify with their political party and pay the party's qualifying fee before the spring primary. Independent county candidates petition the Judge of Probate with signatures equal to 3 percent of the votes cast for governor in the jurisdiction, with no fee. Municipal candidates file a statement of candidacy with the city clerk during a two-week window about two months before the August election and pay a small fee set by the city (Huntsville charges $100 for council and $50 for school board).

File with: County offices: your political party's qualifying officer for the primary, or the Judge of Probate for an independent petition (no fee). Municipal offices: the city clerk (Code of Alabama 11-46-25, cited by the Secretary of State's qualifications page for mayor and council). State offices: the Secretary of State.
Filing fee: Set by the party for partisan primaries; confirm the amount with the county or state party chair. None for independent petitions. Municipal fees are set by each city: Huntsville's 2026 fees are $200 for mayor, $100 for city council and $50 for board of education.
Petition: Independent candidates only: signatures of registered voters equal to at least 3 percent of the qualified electors who voted for governor in the last general election in the jurisdiction (countywide or district), filed with the Judge of Probate for county offices by 5 p.m. on the day of the party primary (May 19, 2026 for the 2026 cycle); the probate judge supplies the required number. Municipal candidates do not petition.
Partisan?: County offices (commission, board of education, sheriff, probate judge, revenue commissioner, coroner, constable) are partisan with party primaries and runoffs. Municipal elections are run by the city without party primaries: you qualify with the municipal clerk rather than a party, and a runoff four weeks later decides races without a majority (Huntsville: August 25, 2026 election, September 22, 2026 runoff).

Filing window: Municipal: a statutory qualifying period before the August election, opened by the mayor's published notice (Act 2021-157). Huntsville's 2026 window opened June 9 and closed at 5 p.m. June 23, 2026 for the August 25 election, 77 to 63 days before election day. County partisan: the parties set their qualifying deadlines in the winter before the primary; the 2028 primary is March 7, 2028 (Secretary of State election cycle chart). Independent petitions are due by the primary date.

Key Alabama dates
What	When	Note
Municipal qualifying, August 24, 2027 city elections	Varies	Huntsville's 2026 window ran June 9 to 5 p.m. June 23 (77 to 63 days before its August 25 election); the same offsets give June 8 to June 22, 2027. Confirm with your city clerk; the mayor's notice sets the dates.
Voter registration deadline, August 24, 2027 municipal elections	August 9, 2027	15 days before the election (Code of Alabama 17-3-50, per NCSL; Huntsville's 2026 deadline was August 10 for an August 25 election).
Absentee application by mail, August 24, 2027 municipal elections	August 17, 2027	Must be received by the Absentee Election Manager 7 days before the election; hand-delivered applications 5 days before (August 19, 2027).
Municipal election day, 2027-cycle cities	August 24, 2027	Montgomery, Mountain Brook, Scottsboro and Talladega (Secretary of State upcoming elections). A runoff, if needed, follows four weeks later: September 21, 2027.
Annual FCPA report for 2027 activity	January 31, 2028	Every committee not dissolved files by January 31 for the prior year (17-5-8(b)); 2026 municipal committees file by January 31, 2027.
Party primary, 2028 county offices	March 7, 2028	First Tuesday in March in presidential years; runoff April 4, 2028; general November 7, 2028 (Secretary of State election cycle chart). Party qualifying deadlines fall in the preceding winter.

Campaign finance rules in Alabama

State-level campaign finance in Alabama is overseen by Alabama Secretary of State, Elections Division (Fair Campaign Practices Act) through FCPA electronic filing system (fcpa.alabamavotes.gov).

Where local candidates file: Every candidate in Alabama, including county and municipal candidates, files Fair Campaign Practices Act disclosure reports online with the Secretary of State at fcpa.alabamavotes.gov; Act 2021-314 made electronic filing mandatory for municipal candidates from August 1, 2023 (before that they filed with the probate judge of the county where city hall sits). Within five days of becoming a candidate you register your principal campaign committee in the FCPA system and mail the signed appointment form to the Elections Division. You become a candidate when you qualify with a party or the municipal election official, file an independent petition, or raise or spend more than $1,000; a municipal candidate is exempt from committee and reporting requirements until crossing $1,000 (Code of Alabama 17-5-4.1).

Contribution limits: Alabama's Fair Campaign Practices Act sets no dollar limit on contributions from an individual or a political action committee to a candidate's principal campaign committee; the Secretary of State's guide states that PACs 'are permitted to make contributions to principal campaign committees' (17-5-15(b)). The limits are on sources and disclosure: one candidate's committee may not contribute to another candidate's campaign, a state or local committee may not accept more than $1,000 from a federal candidate's committee (17-5-15.1), and a single contribution of $20,000 or more must be reported within two business days (17-5-8.1(c)). County and municipal candidates may raise at any time; only legislative and statewide candidates are barred from raising during legislative sessions (17-5-7(b)(2)).

Reporting: Once past $1,000: monthly reports due the second business day of the following month, starting 12 months before the election (17-5-8(a)(1)); weekly reports each Monday for the four weeks before the election (17-5-8(a)(2)); daily reports only for PACs, never for municipal candidates (17-5-8(a)(3)); and an annual report by January 31 each year the committee exists (17-5-8(b)). For the August 25, 2026 municipal elections the Secretary of State's calendar started monthly reports with August 2025 activity (due September 3, 2025) and set weekly reports for August 3, 10, 17 and 24, 2026.

Contributions for a municipal election may be solicited beginning 12 months before election day (17-5-7(b)(2)); the 2026 municipal calendar opened fundraising on August 25, 2025, so August 24, 2027 candidates could start on August 24, 2026.

Limits and thresholds change. Treat the figures here as a starting point and confirm the current schedule with Alabama Secretary of State, Elections Division (Fair Campaign Practices Act) before you accept a check. Our campaign finance basics guide covers the bookkeeping every local candidate needs on day one.

How voting works in Alabama

In person, with excuse-required absentee voting. Alabama votes at the polls on election day with photo ID (Act 2011-673). There is no in-person early voting anywhere in the state, and absentee ballots require one of a short list of excuses, so nearly every ballot is cast on one Tuesday. Plan turnout around a single day and a small absentee universe.

Early voting: None. Alabama is one of three states (with Mississippi and New Hampshire) that offer no early in-person voting to all voters (NCSL, updated August 2026). Voters who will be away on election day must use an absentee ballot.
Mail ballots: Excuse required: absence from the county, illness or disability, a required shift of 10 or more hours during poll hours, caregiving for a confined family member, military or overseas status, election work away from the home precinct, or incarceration without a disqualifying conviction. Apply to the county Absentee Election Manager (usually the Circuit Clerk) with a copy of photo ID; mailed applications must be received 7 days before the election and hand-delivered applications 5 days before. Mailed ballots must arrive by noon on election day; hand-delivered ballots by 5 p.m. the day before. Emergency applications are allowed up to the day before for late-arising work, medical or death-in-family reasons.
Registration deadline: 15 days before the election (Code of Alabama 17-3-50, per NCSL; Huntsville lists August 10, 2026 for its August 25 election). Register online, by mail or at the county Board of Registrars; there is no same-day registration.
Same-day registration: No

Knowing who has already voted: Alabama has no early-vote file because it has no early voting. The only pre-election return data is absentee: the county Absentee Election Manager (usually the Circuit Clerk, listed on the Secretary of State's City-County Lookup) processes applications and returned ballots, so ask that office in writing what list of absentee applicants it releases and how often; practice varies by county and the absentee universe is small. After the election, the Secretary of State's voter list carries a 'last election voted' field and complete voter history for every voter, so you can rebuild who turned out for a municipal election once the county posts history.

Local government in Alabama: what you can run for

67 counties, each with an elected county commission (four-year terms; Barbour, Bullock and Perry use six) and elected probate judge, sheriff, revenue officials and, in most counties, an elected board of education. The 2022 Census of Governments counts 462 municipal governments, 138 independent school districts (county systems plus city systems) and 541 special districts in Alabama; there are no townships. Cities operate under Title 11 of the Code, mostly with a mayor and council; some cities elect school boards, as Huntsville does, while many city boards are appointed.

City council member
Mayor
County commissioner
County board of education member
City board of education member (where elected)
Sheriff
Probate judge
Revenue commissioner, tax assessor or tax collector
Coroner
Constable

When local elections happen: County offices follow the state cycle: primaries the fourth Tuesday in May (first Tuesday in March in presidential years), runoffs four weeks later, and the general on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of even years; commission and school board seats stagger by county. Municipal elections are held in late August on a four-year cycle that differs by city, with no county or state races on the ballot: Huntsville, Auburn, Bessemer and Gadsden voted August 25, 2026; Montgomery, Mountain Brook, Scottsboro and Talladega vote August 24, 2027. Ask the city clerk for your city's year.

Running your Alabama campaign on Culper

Culper does not license voter data in Alabama today. You upload the Alabama voter file described above as a CSV, and every feature runs on it: search and lists, plain-English queries, texting and email, block walking, and volunteer coordination. Online donation processing is in development; ask about timing on the onboarding call. Your file stays in your campaign's workspace and is never shared with another campaign.

Set up your Alabama campaign in an afternoon

Upload the voter file, ask for your first list in plain English, and hand your volunteers the walking app. Signup is open to candidates in every state. Pricing is set after a short call so it matches the size of the race.

Get started Book a demo

Alabama questions we get asked

How much does the Alabama voter file cost, and does it include phone numbers and vote history?

One cent per voter record for an electronic copy, with no minimum and no extra charge for fields, under Code of Alabama 17-4-38. You order from the Secretary of State by county, city or district and choose the fields: name, address, phone (as available), date of birth, registration date, last election voted, complete voter history, race, gender and every district. A 20,000-voter Alabama council district costs about $200, delivered as tab-delimited text or Excel.

Where do city council candidates in Alabama qualify and file campaign finance reports?

You qualify with the city clerk by filing a statement of candidacy during the municipal qualifying window and paying the city's fee (Code of Alabama 11-46-25; Huntsville charges $100 for council). Campaign finance is separate and statewide: once you raise or spend more than $1,000 you register a principal campaign committee and file monthly, weekly and annual reports with the Alabama Secretary of State at fcpa.alabamavotes.gov, mandatory for municipal candidates since August 1, 2023.

Is there a contribution limit for local candidates in Alabama?

No dollar limit on what an individual or PAC may give an Alabama candidate. The Fair Campaign Practices Act instead bans candidate-to-candidate committee contributions, caps money from a federal candidate's committee at $1,000, and requires any single contribution of $20,000 or more to be reported within two business days. County and municipal candidates may also raise while the Legislature is in session; only legislative and statewide candidates are restricted.

When are Alabama municipal elections and when is qualifying?

Alabama cities vote on a Tuesday in late August of their election year on a four-year cycle, with a runoff four weeks later: Huntsville, Auburn, Bessemer and Gadsden on August 25, 2026, and Montgomery, Mountain Brook, Scottsboro and Talladega on August 24, 2027. Qualifying opens with the mayor's notice roughly eleven weeks out and closes two weeks later; Huntsville's 2026 window was June 9 to June 23. Confirm your city's dates with the clerk.

Does Alabama have early voting?

No. Alabama is one of three states, with Mississippi and New Hampshire, that offer no in-person early voting to all voters. The only way to vote before election day is an excuse-based absentee ballot through the county Absentee Election Manager, with applications due 7 days before the election by mail or 5 days before in person. Plan an Alabama local campaign around a single election day and a photo ID requirement at the polls.

How do I run for county commission or school board in Alabama?

County commission and county board of education seats in Alabama are partisan. You qualify with the Republican or Democratic party and pay its fee before the winter deadline for the spring primary (March 7, 2028 for the next presidential-year cycle), or run as an independent by filing a petition with the Judge of Probate signed by voters equal to 3 percent of the votes cast for governor in your district, due by primary day with no fee. Which districts are up in which year varies by county; ask the probate judge.

How can an Alabama campaign track who has voted?

Before election day, only absentee voters have voted, and the county Absentee Election Manager (usually the Circuit Clerk) handles those applications and ballots; ask that office what it releases and how often. After the election, buy the Secretary of State's voter list for your district with the 'last election voted' and 'complete voter history' fields to see exactly who turned out, then build your next Alabama walk list from the voters who did.

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Sources

Facts on this page were checked against the official sources below on September 9, 2026. Rules change between cycles; when a number here and the agency disagree, the agency is right.