They have received almost no coverage from the big news institutions, but the primaries being held tomorrow could affect the future course of American history. No, I’m not talking about the Democratic presidential primaries in Montana and South Dakota. Those have received plenty of coverage. I’m talking about the congressional primary elections taking place in seven states tomorrow. Chances are that you haven’t heard a peep about them.

Let’s start with Alabama. In the state’s second congressional district, there’s a big difference between the candidates competing for the Democratic nomination to the House of Representatives. Robert Bright is a Democrat in name, but he supports the agenda of the Republican Party. Bright favors:

- continuing the Iraq War
- drilling for oil in protected public lands like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
- controlling women’s reproduction
- anti-immigrant xenophobia

Bright also opposes universal health care reform. He wants to keep health care in the hands of the insurance companies that have focused on depriving their customers of necessary medical care.

If Bobby Bright gets elected to the House of Representatives, he would cause more harm than good. He’s the kind of Democrat who gives Democrats a bad name. I hope to see 2nd district Democrats in Alabama choose one of the alternatives to Bright instead: Cendie Crawley or Cheryl Sabel.

In Alabama’s 4th congressional district, Republican incumbent Robert Aderholt will face either Greg Warren or Nick Sparks as the Democratic nominee. Either Warren or Sparks would be an improvement on Aderholt’s ideological extremism, but Nick Sparks shows signs of supporting many of the failed Republican policies of the kind Aderholt approves of. Greg Warren would provide voters with more of a clear choice in the general election.

In the 5th congressional district, Democrat Bud Cramer is retiring, and good riddance. Congressman Cramer has voted in favor of the most outrageous items on the Bush agenda, such as rushing to invade Iraq, helping big government spy against law-abiding citizens, and actually making it easier for government-funded programs to engage in religious discrimination.

Seeking to replace Cramer are David Maker, physicist, and Parker Griffith, state senator and medical doctor. As you’ll see if you follow the links I just provided, David Maker has not bothered to create a campaign web site, suggesting that he’s relying on behind-the-scenes talks to try to secure the nomination. Let’s hope that approach would not continue into the general election.

Parker Griffith does have a campaign web site. What I find there does not make my heart sing, with some unnecessary pandering on illegal immigration and spending to benefit military contractors. However, Griffith does not seem to embrace the kind of right wing agenda Bud Cramer felt so fond of.

There are three Democrats competing to take on Republican Senator Jeff Sessions. Rather inarticulate is Johnny Swanson the Third, who presents a collection of vague, awkwardly-phrased issues statements on a web site that loudly plays the national anthem, with a mute button that doesn’t work. I can’t imagine how Swanson would earn the Democratic nomination.

A more interesting, and even more eccentric, Democratic challenger to Jeff Sessions is Mark Townsend, whose motto is “Sessions is a Sissy”. Townsend’s central campaign issue is the display of the American flag at college football games.

That leaves us with Vivian Figures as the single serious, credible Democratic nominee for Senate in 2008. She seems to have a solid grasp of the issues, and doesn’t seem to represent the kooky Bud Cramer wing of the Alabama Democratic Party either. If Alabama Democrats are at all sane, she ought to be the Democratic candidate against Jeff Sessions this year…

… which is why I think we might anticipate a cliffhanger in the Democratic primary in the Senate campaign in Alabama tomorrow.