Editor’s note: An earlier version of this article included a biography provided to News 19 by Candice Duvieilh’s campaign. It stated she had “nearly two decades” of experience in Alabama. The campaign contacted News 19 on May 27, saying her biography should read “nearly a decade” of experience across the Southeast. This has been updated.
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — Three Democrats are hoping to challenge Huntsville-area Rep. Dale Strong‘s congressional seat in the November general election.
Strong has held the seat since 2022. He was reelected in 2024 in a race in which he did not face a Democratic opponent. Strong does not face a Republican opponent in this primary election.
Sample ballots for the May 19, 2026 primary election
Despite the unopposed Republican primary, the Democratic one has three people running for a shot in the general election: veteran Jeremy Devito, educator Candice Duvieilh and businessman Andrew Sneed.
News 19 at 6 p.m.
Ahead of the May 19 primary, News 19 took the time to catch up with each candidate to ask them a few questions. The answers the candidates provided are below, and they have only been edited for grammar and spelling.
1. Please provide a short biography.
Devito: Jeremy Devito is a U.S. Army veteran and procurement professional running for Alabama’s 5th Congressional District.
His campaign, “Jeremy Takes the House,” is dedicated to restoring integrity to government and advocating for the economic and civil rights of North Alabamians.
Duvieilh: Duvieilh provided the following bio to News 19 on May 14:
Dr. Candice Duvieilh, Ed.D., is an educator and nonprofit leader with nearly two decades of experience delivering results for communities across Alabama. A daughter of the working class and a mom, she believes AL-05 deserves competent, capable, qualified leadership that listens, shows up, and gets things done. She is a candidate for U.S. Congress in Alabama’s 5th Congressional District.
On May 27, Duvieilh’s campaign reached out to News 19 with a correction and said the bio should read:
Dr. Candice Duvieilh, Ed.D., is an educator and nonprofit leader with nearly a decade of experience delivering results for communities across the Southeast. A daughter of the working class and a mom, she believes AL-05 deserves competent, capable, qualified leadership that listens, shows up, and gets things done. She is a candidate for U.S. Congress in Alabama’s 5th Congressional District.
Sneed: Born and raised in North Alabama, Andrew Sneed is a devoted husband and proud father to three little girls. He worked his way up in the trades, starting as a $10-an-hour plumber’s helper, to eventually becoming a Master Plumber and Gas Fitter. He started his small business in 2019. The three most important things to Andrew are his faith, family and the dignity of honest work. Andrew is running for Alabama’s 5th Congressional District because Washington has stopped working for the people of this community and because he believes it does not have to be this way.
2. What do you want voters to know about you?
Devito: I’m 41 years old, born in Clarksville, Tennessee. I’m an Army combat veteran trained in psychological operations. I deployed twice to Afghanistan in 2010 and 2011, where I worked to win the trust of local leaders in Zabul and Daykundi provinces. Those experiences taught me how fragile trust is, and how important it is to earn it.
I’m also a husband, a father, and a community organizer. I’ve dedicated my life to serving others, including founding a nonprofit that supports veterans.
Politically, I’m a progressive. To me, that means fighting for people over power every time. It means using government to improve lives, protect rights, and rebalance power toward working people.
In this primary, I’m probably the most progressive candidate in the race—and I’m not running from that. I support raising the federal minimum wage, passing universal healthcare, making college and housing more affordable, and addressing the long-standing inequities that still exist in this country.
But more than labels or policies, what I bring to this race is a willingness to act. I’ve seen what happens when leadership fails—and I’m running to make sure it doesn’t.
Duvieilh: I am a mom and the wife of a veteran. I am also a government accounting expert and a policy analyst with K-12 classroom experience and software development experience. The key issues impacting our daily lives are things I live and work with on a daily basis. We need experienced representation that will show up and fight for a future that allows our children to thrive.
Sneed: Voters should know that I’m running for Congress because the people of this district deserve a representative who listens to every voice. I was born and raised in the Fifth District. I have worked with my hands for 25 years and know what it’s like to go without healthcare or to struggle to get by. I’m a small business owner, and I am proud to be able to provide my employees with paid vacation, paid paternity leave, and healthcare that I pay for in full once they’ve been with the company for a year, because no one should be afraid to get hurt or be sick. I’m committed to making life better for the people of this community who are getting squeezed by higher prices everywhere – from the gas pump to the grocery line. Our current representative refuses to meet with or listen to his constituents. This district deserves a representative who is willing to listen and who is willing to set a tone of unity and understanding for folks from Moulton to Madison and Pisgah to Priceville.
3. What do you hope to accomplish in office?
Devito: First and foremost, I’m running to break the grip that big corporations and wealthy elites have over our politics and put that power back in the hands of working people.
My personal ambition would be to pass universal healthcare as our standard healthcare system in America. It’s time we treat healthcare as a human right—not a privilege tied to your job. When we do that, we will see improvements across the board in cost and quality.
Second, I’m going to hold people accountable. The truth is, we don’t even know the full extent of the corruption that’s taken root in Washington since Trump got elected. That means subpoenas, hearings, real oversight, and when necessary, prosecutions. That’s going to be a major focus of the next Congress. And locally, I’m committed to making sure this entire district, not just Huntsville, gets the attention and investment it deserves. That means expanding healthcare access in places likeLawrence County, supporting working families in Jackson County, strengthening unions, and making sure our rural communities aren’t left behind. I’ll be working directly with county commissions to connect people with real projects and real resources
Duvieilh: I look forward to creating policy and rebuilding systems that actually work for the people. Policy is far too often left with loopholes and no true way for it to be enforced. That stops with me. Accountability and enforcement will be a top priority when creating legislation.
Sneed: Our healthcare system is on life support and needs to be addressed with urgency. The affordability crisis is suffocating Alabamians as they try to make ends meet. I will work to mitigate the disastrous results of the “Big Beautiful Bill.” And while those things will take time, what I unequivocally pledge from day one is to intentionally set a tone of unity and to reject the politics of division. As your Congressman, I pledge to a minimum of quarterly town halls throughout the district.
We need Congress to be Congress again. Right now, in addition to the immediate problems affecting the quality of life of everyone in North Alabama, we are facing existential threats to our democracy. Many members of Congress have allowed our Constitution and the needs of constituents to take a backseat to their personal ambitions and special interests. As a candidate, I’ve formed a coalition, Take BAC Congress (take-bac-congress.us), of over 100 candidates from 38 states who pledge to, if elected, work tirelessly to enact legislation that will mandate that Congress be balanced and accountable to the people.
4. Why are you the best choice for voters in this race?
Devito: I got into this race because we are at a crucial time in our nation’s history and I couldn’t stand by. I am duty-bound to answer the call
Here’s what I mean:
I believe our president is acting in ways that threaten our democracy. I believe his cabinet is undermining the Constitution, damaging our economy, and squeezing working Americans, and I believe Congress has failed to act.
And that’s exactly why I’m the best choice in this race, because I’m willing to do something about it.
I’m coming to hold people accountable, no matter who they are. That means real oversight, real investigations, and real consequences when people abuse power. It means impeachment.But it’s not just about calling out what’s wrong, it’s about delivering something better. I’m fighting for universal healthcare because no one in this country should go broke just to stay alive. I’m fighting to lower costs for working families, strengthen unions, and take power backfrom corporations that have too much control over our economy.
And here at home, I’m committed to making sure this entire district, not just Huntsville, gets the attention it deserves. That means investing in rural communities, expanding access tohealthcare in places like Lawrence County, and actually showing up and working with local leaders to get things done.
This campaign is about accountability, action, and making government work for the people again, and I’m ready to fight for it
Duvieilh: We need qualified people who can relate to the lived experience of average Americans. I am a mom, my daughter’s future is riding on how I get this job done. I won’t let you down because I cannot let her down. The added bonus is that I am actually qualified to do the work and do it well.
Sneed: I’m a plumber. I fix things for a living. Right now, Congress is deeply broken. We are seeing that the Constitution and due process are being ignored. I condemn the damaging actions that will effectively disenfranchise many of our Black friends and neighbors. As a representative, I will be committed to fighting for everyone’s right to equal representation. If I’m elected, I will fight for Congress to once again uphold its Constitutional duty as a coequal check and balance, as the Founders intended.
I’m also proudly and unflinchingly pro-labor. As a former union member myself, I am especially proud to have recently received the endorsement of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE). I have also received the endorsement of the Alabama Democratic Conference (ADC), which shows that people in this community are ready for this campaign to make a difference.
5. You are running to unseat a well-funded incumbent; what makes you think you can win?
Devito: Right now, voters aren’t asking, Who has the most money? They’re asking, Who’s actually on my side?
And the real question is, who can we trust?
Because this race, politics, isn’t about money anymore. It’s about trust. And big money comes with strings attached, a lot of questions, and it raises a lot of suspicions.
Across this district, and honestly across the country, people feel like things have gotten out of control. Prices are up. Basic needs are harder to afford. And folks are tired of being told everything’s fine while we’re the ones struggling to get by.
So when people see a campaign fueled by big money, well-connected politicians, and PACs, it doesn’t look like strength; it looks like the same system that’s been ignoring them.
We are going to win this primary and this general because this campaign is backed by nothing but grassroots donors and volunteers. And that’s inspiring. That’s what builds trust. And that’s what wins an election.
Duvieilh: We need qualified people who can relate to the lived experience of average Americans. I am a mom, my daughter’s future is riding on how I get this job done. I won’t let you down because I cannot let her down. The added bonus is that I am actually qualified to do the work and do it well.
Sneed: I’ll say this – dollars don’t vote. When this campaign out-raised Representative Strong in Q4 of 2025 completely on individual donations (without any corporate PACs or mega-donors), we sent a message that the people of this district are ready for a representative who listens to them, who understands the problems they are facing every day, not someone who will take a phone call from a CEO, but not a constituent.
We are working every day to build a coalition of advocates across the district. That’s what it’s going to take to flip the Fifth District. Our district is tired of Dale Strong – a representative who hasn’t had a town hall in nearly 18 months out of a two-year term. The people of this district – our neighbors – farmers, engineers, parents and teachers are feeling frustrated and discouraged and even scared. The job description is in the title: represent, but you can’t represent folks you don’t listen to. The folks I talk to don’t feel heard or represented. Super PACs and lobbyists may be funding Dale Strong, but they’re not our neighbors. Support has to be earned and not asked for. This campaign is out there, every day earning that support – one conversation at a time and that’s how I know we can flip this seat.