Bradley Byrne

Bradley Roberts Byrne (born February 16, 1955) is an American attorney and politician who served as the U.S. representative for Alabama’s 1st congressional district from 2014 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he represented a Mobile-based district that has been under continuous Republican control since 1965 and that holds a Cook Partisan Voting Index rating of R+15. Over four terms in the House of Representatives, Byrne contributed to the legislative process during a significant period in American history, participating in the democratic process and representing the interests of his south Alabama constituents.

Byrne was born in 1955 in Mobile, Alabama, one of three children, and was raised in neighboring Baldwin County. He attended UMS-Wright Preparatory School in Mobile, graduating in 1973. He went on to Duke University, where he became a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity and earned his undergraduate degree in 1977. Byrne then attended the University of Alabama School of Law, graduating in 1980; among his classmates was future congressman Mo Brooks. After completing his legal education, Byrne returned to Alabama and entered private practice as an attorney, beginning a career in law that would later intersect with public service and politics.

Byrne’s first successful bid for elective office came in 1994, when he was elected as a Democrat to the Alabama State Board of Education. During his tenure on the Board, he became involved in contentious debates over science education and federal involvement in local schools. He initially supported a science curriculum that drew opposition from many religious leaders in Alabama, and later joined the Board in backing a compromise statement that declared explanations of the origin of life and major groups of plants and animals, including humans, should be treated as theory rather than fact, and that no social agenda should be promoted when applying scientific knowledge to world problems. In 1996 he voted with the majority of the Board to reject $18 million in federal education funds over concerns that the money might increase federal control of Alabama’s schools, a decision widely viewed as reflecting the growing conservative influence in his south Alabama district. Byrne subsequently reversed his position and helped persuade the Board to accept the funds. In 1997 he left the Democratic Party and became a Republican, aligning his political affiliation with his increasingly conservative positions.

In 2002 Byrne ran as a Republican for the Alabama Senate, seeking to represent the 32nd district, which includes part of Baldwin County. He won decisively, receiving 91 percent of the vote against his Democratic opponent, and served in the Alabama Senate from 2003 to 2007. In the legislature he built a reputation as a conservative reformer, focusing on education and fiscal issues. In May 2007 he was appointed chancellor of the Alabama Community College System, where he oversaw a controversial reorganization of the system and confronted longstanding problems at several institutions. Bishop State Community College in Mobile had been the subject of investigations in 2006 and 2007 that uncovered financial and academic irregularities. Byrne ordered an audit of Bishop State that revealed numerous deficiencies; by the time the probe concluded in May 2007, a total of 27 individuals had been charged with criminal fraud and theft. Working with Alabama Attorney General Troy King, Byrne sought to recover funds stolen from the community college system. He served as chancellor until resigning on August 31, 2009, to pursue higher office.

Following his resignation, Byrne entered the 2010 race for the Republican nomination for governor of Alabama. During the campaign he was attacked by some primary opponents for allegedly supporting the teaching of evolution and for questioning the infallibility of the Bible. In response, Byrne publicly affirmed his religious beliefs, stating that as a Christian and public servant he believed the world was created by God and that he had fought as a member of the State Board of Education to ensure the teaching of creationism in school textbooks. He declared that he believed “every single word” of the Bible was true and accused his critics of distorting his record. Byrne ultimately lost the Republican runoff for governor. After the campaign, he returned to private practice, joining the law firm Jones Walker on August 16, 2010, where he focused on business law. On February 23, 2011, he announced the creation of Reform Alabama, a nonprofit organization formed with other prominent Alabamians to advocate for governmental reforms; the group actively supported reform legislation during the 2011 Alabama Regular Legislative Session. In 2011 he also considered, but ultimately declined, a run for chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court in the 2012 election.

Byrne’s entry into Congress followed the resignation of U.S. Representative Jo Bonner, who announced on May 23, 2013, that he would step down effective August 15, 2013. Byrne ran in the special election to fill the vacancy in Alabama’s 1st congressional district. He finished first in the Republican primary and advanced to a runoff against Tea Party candidate Dean Young. Although Young refused to endorse him after the runoff, fueling speculation about divisions within the state Republican Party, Byrne secured the backing of Alabama Patriots, a Tea Party-affiliated organization. In the December 17, 2013, special general election, Byrne faced Democratic nominee Burton LeFlore and won with 71 percent of the vote. He took office in January 2014, becoming only the sixth person to represent the district since 1919 and continuing the district’s long-standing Republican representation.

During his tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2014 to 2021, Byrne was reelected multiple times by wide margins. In 2014 he was initially expected to run unopposed, but Burton LeFlore again qualified as the Democratic candidate; Byrne was reelected with 68 percent of the vote. In the 2016 election cycle, he won the Republican primary with 60.1 percent of the vote over his 2013 challenger Dean Young and faced no opposition in the general election. In 2018 he ran unopposed in the Republican primary and defeated Democratic nominee Robert Kennedy Jr. in the general election, winning 63.15 percent to 36.78 percent. Throughout his four terms, Byrne served as a Republican member of the House during a period marked by intense national debate over fiscal policy, health care, immigration, and executive power, and he consistently aligned with conservative positions reflective of his district.

In 2019 Byrne announced that he would not seek reelection to the House in order to run for the U.S. Senate. He entered the Republican primary for the 2020 United States Senate election in Alabama, seeking the seat held by Democrat Doug Jones. In the first round of the primary, however, Byrne finished behind former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville and former U.S. Attorney General and senator Jeff Sessions, and he was eliminated from the race. His service in Congress concluded at the end of his term in January 2021. After leaving the House, Byrne returned to private life and the practice of law, remaining an influential figure in Alabama Republican politics and public affairs.