Robertson, Mitchell will face off in Alabama runoff after bitter AG race

The race to become Alabama's next attorney general is heating up. Katherine Robertson and Jay Mitchell have advanced to a runoff following a hard-fought Republican primary.

Robertson, who serves as chief counsel for current Attorney General Steve Marshall, secured the top spot in Tuesday’s primary results. Mitchell, a former Alabama Supreme Court justice who stepped down from the bench to pursue the office, finished second, while Blount County District Attorney Pamela Casey finished third.

The Road to the Runoff

Voters will head back to the polls on June 16 to decide between Robertson and Mitchell. The winner of the Republican runoff will move on to the Nov. 3 general election, where they are set to face Democrat Jeff McLaughlin, a Guntersville lawyer and former state legislator who ran unopposed on Tuesday. The ultimate victor will succeed Marshall, who is term-limited and is currently seeking a U.S. Senate seat.

A Bitter Republican Primary

Despite both candidates campaigning as pro-Trump figures with a focus on supporting law enforcement, the primary grew increasingly contentious. The attacks were relentless as both camps traded jabs throughout the cycle.

Mitchell leveled heavy criticism at Robertson regarding her campaign funding, specifically pointing to massive donations from out-of-state nonprofits that keep their donor identities private. He also targeted the current AG office, accusing Robertson and Marshall of overseeing the “wrongful prosecution” of a Montgomery police officer in 2019. Marshall dismissed these claims as merely "deceptive campaign fodder."

Robertson hit back hard, labeling Mitchell a “weak fraud” and alleging he had lobbied on behalf of a Muslim country. Mitchell fired back by describing her advertisements as "bald-faced lies."

The financial scale of the race reflected the high stakes: Robertson raised and spent $4.4 million, while Mitchell followed closely with $3.9 million. Meanwhile, Casey ran on her deep experience as a prosecutor, having served as the Blount County DA since 2011, raising $201,000 and spending $195,000.