SB 21 Alabama Senate · 2026 Regular Session

Offices of Governor; Lieutenant Governor; Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court; judge of the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals or Court of Criminal Appeals; judge of a circuit court or district court; member of the Legislature; Attorney General; State Auditor; Secretary of State; State Treasurer; Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries; member of the State Board of Education; and local sheriff, district attorney, circuit clerk, or constable required to be held by a natural born citizen of the United States, Constitutional Amendment

SB 21 proposes amending Alabama's constitution to require all listed state and local officials to be natural-born U.S. citizens, replacing current requirements that some offices only need U.S. citizenship for a specified period (e.g., 10 years for Governor). It would affect 16 positions including Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Supreme Court justices, judges, legislators, county sheriffs, district attorneys, and state auditors. The bill eliminates existing residency-based citizenship timelines and mandates natural-born status for all these offices. This constitutional amendment is currently pending committee review in the Alabama Senate.
Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Oct 2025
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Oct 27, 2025 Last action Jan 23, 2026
Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
3
Key actions
1
Committee
1
Jan 23, 2026
Upper · Passed
Pending Committee Action in House of Origin (State Governmental Affairs)
upper
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Photo of Donnie Chesteen
Donnie Chesteen
RRepublican
AL
29