Saturday, May 16 — Tomorrow, the only dialysis center in Macon County closes for good

Tomorrow — the deadline he negotiated arrives

Sunday, May 17. Tomorrow. The Fresenius Kidney Care dialysis center on East Martin Luther King Highway in Tuskegee closes permanently. Roughly fifty patients lose the place they go three times a week to stay alive. The nearest remaining facilities are in Tallassee, Auburn, and Union Springs — thirty to fifty miles each way, three times a week.

The closure date is the deadline Rep. Figures himself negotiated with Fresenius corporate in March. His office announced it on March 18 in a press release from Washington. That release contained the "tremendous gap" framing. It said the office would "continue to explore long-term solutions for dialysis treatment."

Today is day fifty-nine since that release. There has been no public follow-up. No new statement. No Tuskegee site visit on the public record. No companion bill. No committee hearing. No appropriations request specifically addressing the closure. The press release stood. The deadline arrived. The deadline is tomorrow.

Macon County stays in District 2 under both the court-drawn map and the 2023 map that the Supreme Court reinstated on Monday. Whichever way the litigation runs from here, the dialysis patients are District 2 voters. They will remember who showed up. They will remember who did not.

Two Columns — what he said, what he did

What he said: March 18 press release from Washington: "The people in Tuskegee who need dialysis cannot afford to miss a treatment." What he did: Did not visit the Tuskegee facility. No public site visit on record between March 18 and May 16.

What he said: "This will leave a tremendous gap in the health care system in Macon County." What he did: Did not introduce companion legislation for a successor dialysis provider. Did not request a House Committee on Energy and Commerce hearing.

What he said: "We will continue to explore long-term solutions for dialysis treatment." What he did: Did not publicly identify a single long-term solution. Did not name a successor operator. Did not request federal capital assistance.

What he said: May 7 town hall in Montgomery: "Your voice is on the line." What he did: Held the town hall on a topic that affects his political future. Did not hold a town hall in Tuskegee on a topic that affects his constituents' lives.

What he said: May 11 statement after SCOTUS: "I ran for this seat to be a voice for all of Alabama." What he did: Told Lagniappe Mobile on May 13 he has not decided whether to run in District 2 or District 1.

What he said: May 11 statement: "The fight must and will go on." What he did: Filed no public action on the Tuskegee closure between March 18 and the closure itself on May 17. Fifty-nine days, no fight.

The parallel case — Wilcox County

The Tuskegee closure is not an isolated story. Fresenius announced on February 24 it would also close the Wilcox County dialysis center — the only such facility in Wilcox County. That facility shut on its original schedule on March 20. Wilcox is in District 7, represented by Terri Sewell. No public Sewell follow-up either. Two rural Alabama counties lose their only dialysis center in the same three-month window.

The Court-Appointed Incumbent still does not know which district he is running in

Thursday, Lagniappe Mobile reported Figures "has not yet decided whether he will seek re-election along Alabama's Gulf Coast or in its Wiregrass region." His campaign told Lagniappe on the record: "The Supreme Court did not dismiss the case, so we still do not know what the district lines will ultimately be." Briefs on the plaintiffs' TRO motion were filed yesterday at the three-judge panel. A ruling is expected next week.

The Republican field for August 11 — four days to qualifying

Major-party qualifying opens Wednesday May 20. Closes Friday May 22, 5 PM. Three-day window. Three Republicans publicly committed:

Hampton Harris — previously-qualified Republican nominee. Already on the May 19 ballot. State Rep. Rhett Marques (Enterprise, HD-91) — switched from CD-1 on May 11. In-district under 2023 map. Joshua McKee (Robertsdale, Baldwin County) — switched from CD-1 on May 12. Out-of-district.

Three questions still on the table

When the courtroom that made him is gone, does the money stay? With the court order vacated and partisan environment shifted 22 points right, national investment has to be made fresh. Q2 FEC report due July 15 will tell us who stayed.

Will his spouse and family leave their Maryland home and join him on the trail? The Figures family residence in the Washington area is public record. Four-hour drive from Maryland to the Capitol. Five-hour flight from Maryland to the Wiregrass.

Will he hold events in the Wiregrass? Coffee, Dale, Geneva, Houston, Henry, and Pike counties added to District 2 — roughly 200,000 voters. He has no campaign history there. No events on record there. No relationships there.

Three Wiregrass town hall topics we are still waiting for the Court-Appointed Incumbent to schedule

The Maryland-to-Mobile-to-Wiregrass commute — a fireside chat. How he plans to introduce himself to 200,000 voters in counties he has never campaigned in, while keeping his family residence in the Washington suburbs.

Peanuts: an introductory lecture. The Wiregrass produces roughly half the peanuts grown in the United States. Coffee County alone exports more peanut tonnage than the Republic of Argentina.

Section 2 and You: a litigation update. The Court-Appointed Incumbent's campaign told Lagniappe Mobile on Wednesday "we still do not know what the district lines will ultimately be." A moment of silence will be observed for the map.

What this weekend asks of you

Carry the Tuskegee number. Fifty-nine days of silence. One day to closure. The deadline he negotiated. The follow-up he never made.

Vote on Tuesday, May 19. Polls open 7 AM, close 7 PM. Monday, May 18 is the last day to hand-deliver a completed absentee ballot.

Talk to the people in your network who are paying attention to August 11 qualifying. Window opens Wednesday, closes Friday at 5 PM.

Pray for the Tuskegee patients. Fifty of them lose their facility tomorrow.

take2back.com • Take Back District 2 • Saturday, May 16, 2026 • 171 days to November 3