Via the AP: Five high court seats at stake in divisive GOP primary

In the GOP primary:

_Associate Justice Tom Parker, an ally of ousted Chief Justice Roy Moore, opposed Chief Justice Drayton Nabers Jr. for the top administrative position in Alabama’s court system.

_Opelika lawyer Ben Hand tried to unseat Associate Justice Champ Lyons Jr. for Place 1 on the court.

_Hank Fowler, a staff attorney for Parker, challenged Associate Justice Tom Woodall for Place 2.

_Alan Zeigler, a Birmingham attorney, opposed Associate Justice Lyn Stuart for Place 3.

_Former Associate Justice Jean Brown, Civil Appeals Judge Glenn Murdock and Prattville attorney Tracy Gwyn BirdSong sought the nomination for the Place 4 seat.

With Fowler we have another Moore-ite trying to unseat one of the Republicans who helped in Moore’s ouster. Ben Hand is also a recruite of Moore/Parker.

Meanwhile, Brown was also one of the Associate Justices who sided against Moore and she was beaten by Parker for the GOP nomination in 2024.

The permutations are bizarre. I would expect Nabors to win the primary, but as best I can tell that means that he and Parker, after a very nasty campaign, will then have to work together on the court for two more years, as I don’t think that Parker had to resign to run for the nomination.

Meanwhile, if Jean Brown wins that means two years with the guy who took her sear away–either as another Associate, or as Chief.

It is a rather odd time in the Alabama GOP these days–at least on the high court.