CULLMAN, Ala. – Alabama Senate Republicans nominated Sen. Garlan Gudger, R-Cullman, on Thursday, Nov. 5, to continue as president pro tem for the 2026-2030 legislative term, setting up a full Senate vote in January.
The nomination came during the caucus’s post-election meeting in Birmingham, according to a news release announcing the decision.
The caucus vote does not formally elect Gudger to another term as the chamber’s leader.
That decision rests with the full 35-member Senate when lawmakers meet for their organizational session in January 2027.
The release described the Republican caucus as having 24 members and said its members have pledged to vote together, giving Gudger enough support to win the leadership election if that commitment holds.
“I appreciate their ongoing confidence,” Gudger said in the statement.
Gudger has served as president pro tem since Feb. 4, 2025, when senators from both parties unanimously elected him to succeed Greg Reed, R-Jasper. Reed resigned from the Legislature effective Jan. 1, 2025, to join Gov. Kay Ivey’s administration.
Thursday’s nomination puts Gudger in line for his first full four-year term leading the chamber after initially taking over during the previous legislative term.
“If elected to serve again as Senate pro tem at the upcoming organizational session, I will continue working to ensure that every member’s voice has an opportunity to be heard in the committee rooms and chamber of the Alabama Senate,” Gudger said.
The process follows the same two-step path that brought Gudger to the position nearly two years ago.
The Tribune reported that Senate Republicans selected him during a Dec. 3, 2024, caucus meeting. The full Senate’s election followed when the 2025 regular session opened in February.
Gudger represents Senate District 4, which includes portions of Cullman, Marion and Winston counties. He first won election to the Senate in 2018 and was reelected in 2022. Before becoming pro tem, he chaired the Senate Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development Committee.
Gudger won election to the Cullman City Council in 2004. He served on the council for 14 years, including 10 years as council president, before moving to the Legislature.
In a December 2024 interview with The Tribune, Gudger credited local leaders with shaping his approach to representing constituents.
“They taught me to be fair and to take care of all the people you represent,” Gudger said.
