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The Anthony Daniels campaign is hitting back on the issue of residency, pointing out in recent campaign materials that Shomari Figures, the apparent frontrunner in the race for the 2nd congressional district, hasn’t lived in the state of Alabama for more than a decade.
In polling and mailers, the Daniels campaign points out that while Figures (and others) have made an issue out of Daniels representing and living in the Huntsville area, Figures has spent much of the last 14 years living in Washington D.C.
A recent polling question said Figures and his family moved into a $1.2 million home in the Bethesda, Maryland area in 2022. A mailer that went out from the Daniels campaign said Figures only claimed residency in Alabama a few weeks prior to the filing deadline in Nov. 2023 and that his family remains living in Bethesda.
“Mr. Figures and the dark money super-PACs supporting him talk about me living in Huntsville, but I don’t have to get on a plane to get to the district like he does,” Daniels said in a statement. “I was raised in the district and have brought millions of dollars in incentives and jobs to the district, all while he wasn’t living in the same state.That explains why he doesn’t know how to solve Alabama problems. He doesn’t even know what they are. He’s never lived in this state as an adult, much less worked to help the people here.”
The Figures campaign hit back, pointing out that Figures and his family now live in the district and can legally vote in the district, unlike Daniels.
“We live in the same place I was born and raised – in Mobile, Alabama – and we have the receipts to prove that, most notably: my kids go to school everyday in this District, and my wife and I were able to vote in this race on March 5th – unlike Mr. Daniels,” Figures said in a statement. “Mr. Daniels obviously feels very ashamed that on April 16th he can’t even vote for himself, because he refuses to live in the District.”
In response, Daniels said he owns a home in Montgomery County and has lived in the state for the past 38 years.
“I’ve been working to help this state for my entire political career, and in fact helped lead the effort that resulted in the 2nd congressional district being redrawn,” Daniels said. “Because of that work for this state, I received the endorsement from the New South Alliance, a proud organization founded by the late, great Michael Figures, a Civil Rights hero in this state (and father of Shomari Figures). I’m proud of that, and of the work I’ve put in to help Alabamians, including the people of CD2.”
Shomari Figures didn’t shy away from the fact that he’s spent more than the last decade living and working in D.C., with much of that time at either the White House or the Department of Justice.
“It’s no secret that I lived in the D.C. area while working at the highest levels of federal government to make healthcare more affordable, make our criminal justice system more fair, and protect voting rights,” Figures said. “That is exactly why I’m the best experienced candidate in this race.
“Mr. Daniels left this District 25 years ago and still hasn’t returned. He lives closer to Ohio than to Mobile. His life, his home, his heart, and his passion are in Huntsville — not in District 2. And, if elected, Huntsville would be his priority because that’s the place that made him.”
Daniels noted, however, that it was being raised in Midway by his grandparents that made him and played an important role in his success as a lawmaker. Daniels was the youngest Minority Leader in state history and Alabama’s first Black Minority Leader, and in that position he’s helped steer the Democratic agenda and support a variety of candidates and initiatives all around the state.
“Alabama is my home and it always will be, and helping the people of this state, regardless of district, has been my goal since I decided to go into politics,” Daniels said. “This job isn’t a stepping stone for me. You can help people in this job. We all know that Mr. Figures will move back to D.C. as soon as this race is over, regardless of the outcome, and the people here will never see him. Those people deserve better than that.”
