On Tuesday, the Alabama Farmers Federation (ALFA) officially threw its weight behind Katherine Robertson in Alabama’s open 2026 attorney general contest.
The endorsement, voted on by Federation officials from all of Alabama’s 67 counties, offers a marquee, in-state endorsement that could upend months of messaging from former Alabama Supreme Court Justice Jay Mitchell that he alone is the candidate backed by Alabama groups.
For months, Mitchell has framed the race as a contrast between his “homegrown” coalition and what his campaign called Robertson’s “out-of-state” support. After the Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA) took the rare step of endorsing in a primary, backing Robertson, Mitchell blasted it as more outside influence.
ALFA’s move scrambles that narrative.
With over 365,000 paid members statewide and a deep county-level network, FarmPAC’s nod is one of the most coveted in Alabama Republican primaries.
In announcing this year’s slate, Federation President Jimmy Parnell said the group’s endorsements reflect months of vetting with local leaders and candidates across the state.
“Candidates often say the auditorium where we hold the FarmPAC meeting is the most intimating venue in state politics. That’s because they understand the value of our grassroots endorsement,” Parnell said.
“The real work, however, occurs long before we convene in Montgomery. For months, these candidates have been visiting with local Federation leaders and attending county meetings. The candidates we endorsed today know our people, and we know them. We’re ready to work hard in communities across the state to help them win election.”
Robertson currently serves as Chief Counsel to current Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall. She has served in the AG’s office for nearly a decade. Previously, she served in the U.S. Department of Justice and as legislative counsel to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee and former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions. She comes from eight generations of farmers in Dallas County.
ALFA’s timing matters as much as the endorsement itself.
FarmPAC-backed candidates benefit from county-by-county organizing that shows up early — in direct marketing contact, at Federation meetings and events across the state, and ubiquitous sample ballots that indicate which candidates have ALFA’s backing.
The Federation’s layered ground game is be decisive, particularly in rural counties where farming and small-business networks overlap with the most reliable GOP voters.
It also strikes at the core of Mitchell’s case.
For much of the summer and early fall, his campaign framed the race around an “Alabama first” validator test, thanks in part to endorsements from the Alabama Rural Electric Association, the Business Council of Alabama, and the Alabama Trucking Association.
ALFA collapses that contrast.
Whatever else happens between now and May 19, 2026 when the Alabama Republican Party primary is held, Robertson will carry both powerful national signals as well as an in-state seal of approval from a group with real muscle.
Grayson Everett is the editor in chief of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on X @Grayson270.
