Candidates running for the open Alabama Congressional District 2 seat will be in Prichard on Tuesday for a two-hour forum hosted by the United Alliance for Change.

The forum, a “meet the candidates” event, will be among the first within the district ahead of the March 5 primary.

Details are as follows for the Meet the Candidates forum:

Where: Sunlight District Auditorium, 809 E. Seminary St., Prichard

When: 5-7 p.m. on Tuesday

The forum is free and open for the public to attend. It’s considered a non-partisan forum that is not officially endorsed by either the Alabama Democratic or Republican state parties. WPMI-TV anchor Kym Anderson is scheduled to moderate it, and will be asking questions.

The Alabama Democratic Party is scheduled to host a candidates forum on Jan. 30-31 at the Davis Theater in Montgomery. Details are still being hammered out, according to a party spokeswoman. There is planned pre-primary forum for the Republicans.

The race began with 21 candidates — 13 Democrats, eight Republicans. It is now down to 18, with two Democrats dropping out and former NFL and Crimson Tide football player Wallace Gilberry exiting from the Republican side.

The two Democrats who have since dropped out are Darryl Sinkfield, assistant executive director for Field Services at the Alabama Education Association, and Brian Gary, a Montgomery surgeon.

Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District has drawn a lot of interest ever since Alabama’s congressional districts were redrawn. The redrawn map, finalized in late September, was the result of a federal court’s ruling that the state Legislature’s proposed congressional map was in violation of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The boundaries for the new District 2 is viewed as favorable to Democrats. Cook Political Report labels it as a “leans Democrat” district, a dramatic reversal for a district that was once given a +34 advantage for Republicans.

The district has a Black Voting Age Population (BVAP) of slightly less than 49%, up from 40% on the Legislature’s map that was tossed out by the courts. An analysis showed the district leaned Democratic, with Black-preferred candidates receiving more votes in the district than their Republican opponents in 16 of 17 recent elections.