Republicans Win Alabama Public Service Commission Seats

Matt Gentry and Jim Zeigler claimed the two open seats as the commission expands from three to seven members.

Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in Utilities

Republicans Win Alabama Public Service Commission Seats

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Republicans Matt Gentry and Jim Zeigler won Alabama Public Service Commission Places 1 and 2, with Gentry taking 55.1 percent of the Place 1 vote and Zeigler taking 54.8 percent in Place 2. Results were reported with 95 percent of votes counted.

Why it matters

The wins give Republicans control of the seats as the Power to the People Act expands the commission from three members to seven. The races followed criticism of the PSC over high residential electricity bills in Alabama compared with surrounding Southern states.

Gentry won Place 1 with 55.1 percent of the vote to Gordon's 44.9 percent, and Zeigler won Place 2 with 54.8 percent to McNeil's 45.2 percent, based on results with 95 percent of votes counted. Final certified totals were not available in the reporting.

The players

Matt Gentry

Gentry is the Cullman County sheriff who won the Republican nomination for Place 1 on the Alabama Public Service Commission.

Jim Zeigler

Zeigler is a former Alabama state auditor who served two terms from 2015 to 2023 and previously sat on the PSC from 1975 to 1979.

Cynthia Almond

Almond is the appointed Republican chair of the Alabama Public Service Commission, who the newly elected commissioners will join.

The details

Gentry defeated incumbent Commissioner Jeremy Oden in the May Republican primary, taking nearly 75 percent of the vote. Zeigler won the June Republican nomination by defeating incumbent Commissioner Chris Beeker in a runoff.

May: Gentry defeats Oden in the Republican primary.
June: Zeigler wins the Republican nomination over Beeker.
November 3, 2026: General election results are reported.
January 18, 2027: Gentry and Zeigler are sworn in.

Roadmap

The Power to the People Act expands the Alabama Public Service Commission from three members to seven, and the November results fill two of the new positions. The commission's composition is changing as the state weighs how regulated utilities are overseen.

Alabama residential customers pay electricity rates set in part by the commission, and the new members will influence those rates once seated in January 2027. The seats determine how utility pricing and service decisions are reviewed by the state.

The takeaway

Residents paying high power bills should follow how the expanded commission sets rates once new members take office. Tracking filings and public hearings from the PSC is the most direct way to see how decisions affect monthly bills.