Autauga County Republican Women launch new group in Prattville luncheon

Autauga County Republican Women took shape Tuesday in Prattville, where women from across the county and nearby communities gathered at Ann’s Back in the Day Cafe to launch the new organization and install its first officers.

Former state Rep. Perry Hooper Jr., who served in the Alabama House from 1984 to 2003, delivered the keynote address at the inaugural luncheon. His appearance gave the new group an immediate political name recognizable to longtime Republican voters in central Alabama, and underscored the role party veterans still play in building local infrastructure.

The founding slate includes Suzzelle Josey as president, Elaine Wilkes as vice president, Stephanie Irvine as secretary and Sandra Champion as treasurer. Josey said the organization will focus on supporting conservative candidates, increasing local political involvement and building connections among Republican women in Autauga County. That mission places the group squarely in the county’s election machinery at a time when party organizations are looking to line up volunteers, candidates and voters ahead of the 2026 cycle.

The timing matters. Alabama Republican primary elections are scheduled for May 19, 2026, giving the new club only weeks to establish itself before ballots are cast. In a county of 58,805 residents, according to the 2020 census, a new grassroots organization in Prattville, the county seat, can carry outsized weight if it turns monthly meetings into organized turnout and candidate support.

The Alabama Federation of Republican Women lists Autauga County Republican Women as a coming club, and the National Federation of Republican Women says a local club requires at least 10 registered Republican women to organize. The national federation, founded in 1938, is one of the largest women’s political organizations in the country, giving local clubs a broader party structure that reaches from the county level to the state and national network.

Organizers said the club will hold regular monthly meetings and is accepting new members. For Autauga County Republicans, the launch creates a new political base in Prattville with the potential to shape candidate recruitment, voter contact and issue priorities as the 2026 campaign season accelerates.