Former U.S. Rep. Jerry Carl turned heads on Thursday at an Eastern Shore Republican Women’s congressional candidate forum when he said Donald Trump is soon to be a “lame duck” president.

Carl, who is running to win back his old U.S. House seat, told the politically involved crowd that, if elected, he’d return to key committees and fight the fight alongside President Trump.

But then he added a line that seems to forecast his outlook on returning to Congress in 2027 if elected in 2026.

“This will be Trump’s last two years in office. They’re known as a lame duck,” Carl said.

The event, hosted by the Eastern Shore Republican Women at the Fairhope Yacht Club yesterday, featured Carl and his GOP primary opponent, State Rep. Rhett Marques (R-Enterprise).

The “lame duck” label is unusual rhetoric for a Republican primary in deep-red South Alabama. Alabama’s 1st District is currently occupied by U.S. Rep. Barry Moore (R-Enteprise), who is repeatedly recognized as one of the most conservative members of Congress.

Moore defeated Carl in a 2024 head-to-head primary election when the two former colleagues were pitted against each other after federal court-ordered redistricting of Alabama’s congressional maps.

Carl’s lead opponent in 2026, State Rep. Rhett Marques, is a first-time federal candidate who has already garnered some big-ticket support, including from U.S. Senator Katie Britt, Speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives Nathaniel Ledbetter (R-Rainsville), and three dozen fellow GOP state legislative colleagues.

While Marques didn’t directly address Carl’s “lame duck” label of President Trump directly on Thursday during the forum, he cast himself as a dependable vote for Trump’s agenda with a track record of getting things done as a lawmaker.

“I’m very proud of what we’ve done over the last seven years as a State Representative – and when I go to D.C. – I’m going to continue fighting just like I have at the State House for our families, our children, our military, our farmers, the economy, our education,” Marques said.

“And I’m going to do that by supporting Senator Britt and the rest of the Alabama Republican delegation and passing President Trump’s agenda. I can say that because that’s exactly what we have done as a State Representative… Over the last seven years – and I will continue that.”