Hilliard was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1992 from the 7th District, a 65 percent black-majority district stretching from Birmingham to Montgomery. In the process, he became the first Black person since Jeramiah Haralson in 1877 to represent Alabama in Congress.[3] He also became the first Democrat to represent a significant portion of the capital since 1965.[1]
He faced his first serious challenge from Artur Davis in the 2000 Democratic primary election—the real contest in this heavily Democratic district—but prevailed.
Davis challenged Hilliard again in 2002 in a district that had been changed significantly by redistricting. The 7th lost its share of Montgomery, and was pushed further into Birmingham, absorbing a large number of mostly white precincts in that city. The campaign that year was focused on Hilliard's record in office and alleged ethical issues, as well as race, the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, and terrorism.[4] Hilliard claimed "the only thing" that Davis, also an African American, had done for African Americans was "put them in jail" during his time as a federal prosecutor.[4]
In 2001, Hilliard voted against a bill funding increases in military support to Israel and opposing criminalization of Palestinian politicians.[citation needed] A third candidate also ran in the Democratic primary, and Hilliard finished with the most votes but failed to win a majority; under Alabama law, he then faced a rematch with second-place finisher Davis in a run-off election.[5] Davis won the run-off with 54% of the vote.[6]
Hilliard's son, Earl Hilliard Jr., is a former member of the Alabama House of Representatives who ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 2010, also in the 7th district.[1]
