Kenneth Paschal (born December 9, 1966) is an American politician from the state of

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

. A member of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

, Paschal was elected to represent District 73 in the

Alabama House of Representatives The Alabama State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of state of Alabama. The House is composed of 105 members representing an equal number of districts, with each constituency contai ...

in a July 2021 special election. He is the first black Republican elected to the Alabama Legislature in almost 140 years, and the first to serve in the state legislature since W. P. Williams of Madison County served a two-year term from 1882 to 1884.

Career

Paschal served 21 years in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

, retiring in 2006 as a first sergeant. Paschal worked with the Alabama Family Rights Association. He also served on the Shelby County Republican Executive Committee and was a commander of the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...

. Paschal ran for state representative following

Matt Fridy Matt Fridy (born January 17, 1976) is an American politician and lawyer. He serves as a judge on the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals and served in the Alabama House of Representatives from the 73rd district from 2014 to 2020. Fridy graduated fro ...

's resignation in order to join the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals. Among his other positions, Paschal campaigned against

critical race theory Critical race theory (CRT) is a cross-disciplinary examination, by social and civil-rights scholars and activists, of how laws, social and political movements, and media shape, and are shaped by, social conceptions of race and ethnicity. Goa ...

. He won the special election on July 13, 2021, becoming the first black Republican elected to the

Alabama Legislature The Alabama Legislature is the legislative branch of the state government of Alabama. It is a bicameral body composed of the House of Representatives and Senate. It is one of the few state legislatures in which members of both chambers serv ...

since the

Reconstruction era The Reconstruction era was a period in American history following the American Civil War (1861–1865) and lasting until approximately the Compromise of 1877. During Reconstruction, attempts were made to rebuild the country after the bloo ...

. Paschal was sworn in the following day.

Personal life

Paschal lives in

Pelham, Alabama Pelham is a city in Shelby County, Alabama, United States. It incorporated in July 1964 and is a suburb located in the Birmingham metropolitan area, Alabama which was home to over 1.1 million residents as of the 2020 census. At the 2000 census ...

. He is a member of the First Baptist Church of Pelham.

References

External links

Campaign website
1966 births Living people Republican Party members of the Alabama House of Representatives 21st-century American legislators African-American state legislators in Alabama United States Army non-commissioned officers African-American United States Army personnel African-American Christians Black conservatism in the United States 21st-century African-American politicians 21st-century Alabama politicians {{Alabama-politician-stub