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Endorses Mendheim
The race
Alabama Supreme Court, Place 7, is uncontested: Brady E. Mendheim Jr. (R) is the sole candidate on the November 3, 2026 ballot, verified against the Alabama Secretary of State's official sample ballot (SOS grade). Barring a write-in upset, Mendheim takes the seat.
Mendheim's record is long and documented. Governor Kay Ivey appointed him to the Supreme Court on January 22, 2018, after 17 years as a trial judge — Houston County district judge from 2001, then circuit judge for the 20th Judicial Circuit (Houston and Henry counties) from 2009 — during which chief justices specially assigned him more than 250 cases in more than 40 counties and he presided over more than 300 jury trials. Before the bench he was an assistant district attorney for almost seven years. The path had one documented stumble: he lost the June 2018 Republican primary runoff for a full term to Sarah Hicks Stewart — and Ivey then appointed him again on December 28, 2018, to the seat vacated when Tom Parker became chief justice, calling him "clearly the most qualified." He has served since, with endorsements in this cycle from the Alabama Farmers Federation, the Business Council of Alabama, Manufacture Alabama, and the Alabama Realtors PAC, among others listed on the race compilation.
Pros and cons
Mendheim: Credits: A trial judge's record of unusual breadth — 300-plus jury trials, statewide special assignments, Judicial College faculty service, and rules-committee work; twice vetted and appointed by the governor. Dirt/limits: The 2018 primary loss is a proven electoral fact voters should know — Republican primary voters once chose someone else — though the subsequent reappointment and years of unchallenged service since are also fact. No ethics or discipline file surfaced.
OUR CALL
Our call: endorse Brady E. Mendheim Jr. The verified record — decades of trial and appellate judging, prosecutorial service, and business-and-agriculture endorsements — affirmatively aligns with our values of experience, restraint, and law-and-order. The 2018 primary defeat is priced openly above and does not outweigh the service since.
Vote Brady E. Mendheim Jr.
For the complete Election 2026 breakdown — every race, claim by claim — see the full coverage on our website. Vote early. Research your candidates. Choose the best moderates, whatever their party — no extremism from either side. And encourage your friends and family to do the same. --- Sources — Alabama Secretary of State — official 2026 sample ballot — https://www.sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/sample-ballots/2026/gen/Lee-Sample.pdf • Alabama Judicial System — official biography of Justice Mendheim — https://judicial.alabama.gov/CourtMemberBio/ViewBio?id=25 • Governor of Alabama — appointment release, January 19, 2018 — https://governor.alabama.gov/newsroom/2018/01/governor-ivey-appoints-circuit-judge-brad-mendheim-of-dothan-to-the-alabama-supreme-court/ • Alabama Daily News — Ivey reappoints Mendheim, December 28, 2018 (2018 primary loss) — https://aldailynews.com/ivey-appoints-mendheim-to-supreme-court-vacancy/ • 2026 Alabama Supreme Court election compilation — Mendheim endorsements and fundraising — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Alabama_Supreme_Court_election AI-assisted article — but the sources are human, and the facts are very real.