Gary Palmer (politician)
| Gary Palmer | |
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Alabama's 6th district |
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Assumed office January 3, 2015 |
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| Preceded by | Spencer Bachus |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
May 14, 1954 Hackleburg, Alabama, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Alma mater |
University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa (BS) |
| Website | House website |
Gary James Palmer (born May 14, 1954) is an American politician from the state of Alabama. Elected to the United States House of Representatives in 2014, he represents Alabama's 6th congressional district. Prior to his career as an elected official, Palmer co-founded and served as the long-time president of the Alabama Policy Institute, a conservative think tank. He is a member of the Freedom Caucus in the House of Representatives.
Palmer was born in Hackleburg, Alabama. He has a bachelor's degree in operations management from the University of Alabama. In 1989, Palmer co-founded the Alabama Family Alliance, which later became the Alabama Policy Institute. Palmer served as president of the conservative think tank for 25 years, stepping down in 2014 to pursue a run for Congress. Palmer helped found the State Policy Network, a nonprofit umbrella organization for conservative and libertarian think tanks which focus on state-level policy, and served as its president.
Palmer is a longtime member of Briarwood Presbyterian Church (Presbyterian Church in America) in Birmingham.
Palmer declared his candidacy for the 6th district following the retirement announcement of 11-term incumbent Spencer Bachus. In the Republican primary election—the real contest in this heavily Republican district—Palmer finished second behind state representative Paul DeMarco. In the ensuing runoff election, Palmer picked up the support of the Club for Growth. Palmer won the runoff election by a margin of 64% to 36%. In the November 4, 2014 general election, Palmer defeated Democratic nominee Mark Lester, a history professor at Birmingham-Southern College, 76% to 24%.
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