Marilyn Lands is an American politician who currently serves as a Democratic member of the Alabama House of Representatives, representing District 10 in Huntsville. She was elected in a March 2024 special election to succeed Republican David Cole, who resigned after being jailed for electoral fraud.
A Democrat, she was first elected to her seat on March 26, 2024, with over 62 percent of the vote to replace David Cole, a Republican, who resigned his seat after being sentenced to 60 days in jail for electoral fraud.[1] Notably, Cole won his last election with 51 percent of the vote, resulting in over a 17-point swing in favor of the Democrats.
Lands based her campaign on reproductive rights, opposing Alabama's ban on abortion, as well as supporting in vitro fertilization (IVF) in the aftermath of LePage v. Center for Reproductive Medicine.[2] She was endorsed by Planned Parenthood in the election.[1] According to AL.com, "The race drew national interest against the backdrop of the controversial Alabama State Supreme Court ruling that frozen embryos are considered children under state law."[3]