MONTGOMERY, Ala. — As the second week of the 2026 Alabama legislative session comes to a close, the Senate has moved swiftly through its early agenda, approving dozens of local bills and confirmations with little resistance on the floor.
Lawmakers met three times during the week, and those sessions were largely noncontroversial. Under state law, all confirmations must be completed by the tenth legislative day, contributing to the rapid pace.
Republican leaders say the calm start reflects a shared urgency among lawmakers during an election year.
“I do know that we’re all eager to get out of here and get to our districts and campaign and do that kind of thing,” said Clyde Chambliss, a Republican from Prattville.
Chambliss cautioned, however, that smooth proceedings are unlikely to last the entire session.
“There’s always things that may cause hiccups and things to be a little bit slower,” he said. “I don’t expect any of those in the near term. You know, there always is. So it’d be a little bit foolish to say no, everything’s gonna go smooth this whole session.”
Democrats also acknowledged the cooperative tone, at least for now. Merika Coleman, a Democrat from Birmingham, said lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have worked together during the opening weeks.
“We’ve been singing Kumbaya. It would be nice if we finished the session this way,” Coleman said. “So we are actually moving pretty fast. Got some really good things passed thus far.”
Coleman warned that bipartisan cooperation could erode once more contentious legislation reaches the Senate from the House. She pointed to possible debates over immigration and voting legislation, particularly during an election year.
“When some of those other things come upstairs from the House, I think we may be in trouble then in a week or so,” she said. “Immigration bills that are coming up, some of the voting legislation that may come up as well. So, you know, I always talk about election year and red meat and people speaking and playing to their base. So, you know, that’s when we’ll kind of get divided.”
Chambliss said disagreements are inevitable and emphasized that debate is central to the legislative process.
“We’re not supposed to come here and agree on everything,” he said. “We’re supposed to come here and debate things. And we’ll do that as we get deeper into the session. That always happens, and it will this session as well.”
Another unresolved issue from last year continues to linger. The 2025 legislative session ended with a Democratic filibuster that killed several local bills on the Senate calendar, prompting Republican leaders to push local legislation earlier in this year’s session. Coleman said Democrats have not heard renewed discussion from Republican leadership about possible Senate rules changes that could affect the use of the filibuster.
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