Kay Ivey announces Shinhwa investing $78 million on second facility in Auburn
An auto supply company is expanding its footprint in Alabama, Gov. Kay Ivey said. The governor announced Tuesday that Shinhwa plans to invest $78 million into a second manufacturing facility in Auburn that is expected to create 42 new jobs over the course of the next three years. “This is a great example of the constant innovation and advancements in manufacturing – particularly in the automotive sector – right here in Alabama,” Ivey said in a release. “With this expansion, Shinhwa will have invested over $190 million and created more than 185 well-paying jobs since choosing Auburn as their first U.S. location.” According to the release, the company will construct a 400,000-square-foot production facility in Auburn Technology Park adjacent to its current building. The expansion will allow for additional output of aluminum parts and will help the company meet future demand with the rising production of electric vehicles. “This new facility will give us greater capacity for aluminum automotive parts, including both die casting and machining operations, allowing us to further diversify our customer base,” Kwi Hyun Lee, founder and CEO of the Shinhwa Group, said in the release. “This increased capacity will give us the ability to provide greater support for the electric vehicle market here in the U.S.” The Auburn facility opened in 2019, and since then, the company has achieved enough growth to meet the demands of the auto industry. Shinhwa has vertically integrated its supply chain and has added capacity designed to support electric and fossil fuel engines in vehicle manufacturing, according to the release. Shinhwa’s Auburn production facility provides parts to Hyundai’s plant in Montgomery and the Kia facility in West Point, Ga., according to the release. Over the course of the past three years, Shinhwa has undertaken a substantial expansion, according to the release. In November 2021, the company added high-pressure aluminum die casting and post-processing equipment in a $42 million expansion project. “Alabama has become a key player in the evolving global automotive industry, and Shinhwa’s continued growth in Auburn illustrates how our industry is preparing for the future,” Greg Canfield, Secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce, said in the release. “We look forward to working with the company to support its expansion plans and fully develop the growth potential of its Auburn manufacturing operation.” Republished with the permission of The Center Square.
Alabama congressional races to feature one runoff in June
Control of Alabama’s seven-member congressional delegation likely will remain firmly in Republican hands, but not without a contest. Two GOP candidates are in a runoff for the open District 5 seat in north Alabama, and three Republican incumbents and the only Democratic member face opposition in November. All the incumbents will be heavy favorites to return to Washington. Neither District 1 Republican Rep. Jerry Carl of Mobile nor Rep. Gary Palmer of Hoover in District 6 had any opposition, meaning each will get another two-year term. Here is a look at the races in the state’s remaining five congressional districts: DISTRICT 2 First-term GOP Rep. Barry Moore of Enterprise did not have any primary opposition and will face Democrat Phyllis Harvey-Hall in November. Harvey-Hall, a teacher and community volunteer, defeated newcomer Vimal Patel in Tuesday’s election in heavily Republican southeast Alabama. DISTRICT 3 Republican Rep. Mike Rogers of Saks, who was first elected 20 years ago, easily defeated Michael Joiner of Pell City for the GOP nomination in east-central Alabama. Rogers will face Democrat Lin Veasey in the fall. DISTRICT 4 Democrat Rick Neighbors, a veteran and longtime apparel worker from Phil Campbell, defeated Rhonda Gore for the chance to go up against GOP Rep. Robert Aderholt, a 12-term incumbent from Haleyville. Solidly Republican, District 4 covers most of northwest Alabama. DISTRICT 5 The lone runoff in Alabama’s congressional races will occur in north Alabama’s 5th District, where Republican Rep. Mo Brooks gave up the seat to run for Senate. Madison County Commission chair Dale Strong and Casey Wardynski, a former Huntsville school superintendent, advanced to a runoff that will be held June 21. The winner will face Democrat Kathy Warner-Stanton of Decatur, who defeated Charlie Thompson in the primary. DISTRICT 7 Rep. Terri Sewell of Selma, the only Democrat in the state delegation, did not have any primary opposition and will face Republican nominee Beatrice Nichols of Moundville in November. The sprawling district includes the Black Belt of west Alabama plus parts of Birmingham and Montgomery. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
Jim Zeigler, Wes Allen in GOP runoff for secretary of state
Outgoing State Auditor Jim Zeigler and state Rep. Wes Allen advanced to the Republican primary runoff to succeed GOP incumbent John Merrill as Alabama’s top elections officer, secretary of state. Zeigler was barred from running again as auditor by term limits, and Allen served nearly a decade as probate judge in Pike County. Neither could get above the 50% vote threshold in a race that also included Ed Packard, who worked in the secretary of state’s elections division for nearly 25 years, and Christian Horn, a GOP activist and business owner from Madison County. None of the four candidates raised major complaints about election problems in Alabama, which is controlled by Republicans and voted heavily for President Donald Trump in 2020. But all talked about measures needed to tighten election security, an issue popularized among conservatives by Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was stolen by President Joe Biden. The eventual Republican nominee will face Democrat Pamela J. Laffitte of Mobile in November. Merrill couldn’t seek the office again after serving two terms. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
Stan Cooke, Andrew Sorrell to compete in GOP runoff for state auditor
State Rep. Andrew Sorrell of Muscle Shoals and Stan Cooke, a pastor from Kimberly, were the top two vote-getters in the GOP primary for state auditor and will compete in a runoff. Sorrell, who led balloting on Tuesday, and Cooke eliminated Rusty Glover, a former history teacher from Semmes who served in the state Senate, to advance to the June 21 vote. Winning the Republican nomination is tantamount to election because no Democrat qualified to run for auditor. Candidates for auditor typically emphasize the importance of keeping track of state property, but all three Republicans talked about election security in the era of false claims about a stolen presidential vote in 2020 because the auditor has a role in selecting county registrar boards. Copying false claims by former President Donald Trump, Cooke’s campaign website said Alabama must get ahead of Democrats before they “try and steal our elections as they did in Pennsylvania, Arizona, and even our neighbor to the east, Georgia.” The incumbent, Jim Zeigler, could not seek reelection after serving two terms and is running for secretary of state. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
Steve Flowers: We miss Shorty Price
The governor’s races of bygone years were a lot more fun and colorful than today. We would have 10 to 15 candidates. There would be three or four favorites, but we would have ten others that would make an effort to crisscross the state and have fun and cut up a little bit to garner publicity. The “also rans” could not afford the expensive country music stars from Nashville like the George Wallace, Big Jim Folsom, and Jimmy Faulkner frontrunners could to draw a crowd. This year’s gubernatorial race has not been interesting because a popular incumbent governor was running for reelection. However, Kay Ivey did attract eight opponents. However, only two, Lindy Blanchard and Tim James, really mounted a campaign. The six others seem to not do anything, and nobody really knew who they were. The six no-name candidates were Stacy Lee George, Dean Young, Dean Odle, Donald Trent Jones, Dave Thomas, and Lew Burdette. When Burdette qualified, he looked like he had the potential to be a viable candidate, but he seemed to never get out of the gate. If he was running a getting acquainted race, it was unsuccessful. He would probably have as much name identification as a baseball player from the 1960s, who had the same name. As a boy, I had a baseball card of Lou Burdette, who was a pretty good pitcher for the old Milwaukee Braves. Donald Trent Jones probably was hoping that folks would think he was the golf course developer for our famous state links. Dave Thomas was maybe hoping that voters would think he was the Wendy’s hamburgers founder. Today, what we need in the “also ran” category or what I call “run for the fun of it” candidates is another Shorty Price. Most of you do not remember Shorty Price. Ole Shorty was the King of run for the fun of it candidates. He ran for governor every time and really didn’t care how many votes he got. He just ran for the fun of it, and boy was he fun to watch and visit with. He brought new meaning to the word colorful. Shorty was a native of Barbour County, which by the way, is George Wallace’s home county. In fact, Wallace and Shorty grew up together as contemporaries around Clio. Shorty would campaign vehemently and viciously against George Wallace, his nemesis, probably because he was jealous of Wallace’s success as a politician. By the way, Barbour County is called the “Home of Governors” because it has had more governors than any other county in our state’s history. Shorty was maybe the most colorful political clown to ever appear on the Alabama political stage. He not only ran for governor every time, he also ran for numerous offices every time there was an election. That is how he would make his living. He would travel from town-to-town, mostly in southeast Alabama, and panhandle for contributions, and soon after collecting the few dollars that folks would give him, he would convert his campaign contributions into a purchase of a Budweiser beer. In fact, one of his campaign slogans was “Smoke Tampa Nugget cigars, drink Budweiser beer, and vote for Shorty Price.” In one of Shorty’s campaigns for governor, his campaign speech contained this line, “If elected governor, I will reduce the governor’s tenure from four years to two years. If you can’t steal enough to last you the rest of your life in two years, you ain’t got enough sense to have the office in the first place.” Shorty would use recycled campaign signs to save money. He would just change the name of the office he was running for that year. Ole Shorty usually got about two percent of the vote and usually finished last. He was really kind of proud of his usual last-place finish. Indeed, one time the venerable political columnist Bob Ingram mistakenly stated that Shorty finished 13th out of 14th in a particular governor’s race. Shorty blasted Ingram and said, “That’s a blasphemous lie. I finished 14th out of 14.” As stated, Shorty hated George Wallace. One year he was one of many candidates running against Wallace. Shorty coined the slogan, “Shorty, Shorty, he’s our man. George Wallace belongs in a garbage can.” None of these six “also ran” gubernatorial candidates were nearly as good as Shorty. I bet if Shorty were still alive and running today, he would have beaten all six of them. I wish ole Shorty were alive and running in this governor’s race. This governor’s race would have been a lot more fun to watch. See you next week. Steve Flowers is Alabama’s leading political columnist. His weekly column appears in over 60 Alabama newspapers. He served 16 years in the state legislature. Steve may be reached at www.steveflowers.us.
Gov. Kay Ivey avoids runoff in Republican primary
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has turned back eight primary challengers to win the GOP gubernatorial nomination without a runoff in a race that pushed her far to the right. Over the course of the campaign, Ivey repeated former President Donald Trump’s false claims about election theft. Then, the white-haired, 77-year-old Ivey sat at her office desk and pulled three things out of her purse for a campaign commercial: a lipstick, a cellphone, and a revolver. One challenger, former Trump ambassador Lindy Blanchard, slammed Ivey for doing too much to control COVID-19 in a state with one of the nation’s worst pandemic death rates. Another, toll bridge developer Tim James, the son of former Gov. Fob James, did the same and attacked a charter school that opened under Ivey’s watch to cater to LGBTQ youth. Other challengers include Lew Burdette, a former business executive who runs Christian-based group homes; Stacy George, a prison officer and former county commissioner; pastor Dean Odle; GOP activist and businessman Dean Young; Springville Mayor Dave Thomas; and a yoga advocate, Donald Trent Jones. The eventual GOP nominee will face whoever emerges from a Democratic primary runoff between state Sen. Malika Sanders-Fortier of Selma and Yolanda Rochelle Flowers, a career educator from Birmingham. Lieutenant governor at the time, Ivey was catapulted to the state’s top office when Robert Bentley resigned amid scandal in 2017. She easily dispatched four Republican primary challengers and won a full term against a well-financed Democrat, Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox, in 2018. Ivey has pushed a plan to construct new lockups to upgrade Alabama’s crowded, dilapidated prisons, which are the subject of a Justice Department lawsuit, and she passed a gasoline tax hike with automatic increases to fund road work. Challengers have criticized all that as too much big government and also zeroed in on her handling of the pandemic. While some bash Ivey over a COVID-19 response that left the state with nearly 20,000 dead and the nation’s fourth-highest death rate, Republican opponents have hammered her for shutting down businesses and churches to prevent the spread of disease. In a state where roughly 51% are fully vaccinated, Ivey’s claim that it was “time to start blaming the unvaccinated folks” for illness could come back to haunt her. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
Katie Britt, U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks in Alabama Senate runoff
Alabama’s Republican primary for U.S. Senate is going to a June runoff between Katie Britt and U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks after neither candidate captured a majority of the vote. Britt is Richard Shelby’s former chief of staff and the former leader of the Business Council of Alabama. Brooks is a six-term congressman from north Alabama. They will advance to a June 21 runoff, which is required if no candidate captures more than 50% of the initial vote. The two edged out Mike Durant, a businessman best known as the helicopter pilot shot down and captured in the events chronicled in “Black Hawk Down.” Donald Trump had initially endorsed Brooks but rescinded that backing in March, citing unhappiness with Brooks’ performance and accusing the conservative congressman of going “woke” for suggesting it was time to move on from Trump’s 2020 election fraud claims. Shelby, one of the Senate’s most senior members, announced last year that he would not seek reelection in 2022, igniting the messy GOP primary at a time when the national Republican Party is trying to chart a direction after Trump’s departure. Outside groups have pumped more than $20 million into the Alabama race to either support or oppose one of the frontrunners. Phil. T. McCuiston Jr., 83, wore a cap emblazoned with “Trump” Monday to hear Brooks speak with Texas Sen. Ted Cruz in Huntsville. “Trump gets 95% of them right, but on this one, I’m going to stand with Brooks,” said McCuiston, a retired businessman. “He’s got the record.” Ashlie Combs, a 40-year-old veteran from Lincoln, said many of the men she served with in Iraq joined the armed forces because of Durant. She said she was impressed by his willingness to sit down with her and discuss ongoing issues for veterans, such as suicide rates. “To have him sit and listen to me as a person and not just a number or a box to check off, was great,” Combs said. Jack Graham, 71, cast his vote for Britt in east Montgomery on Tuesday. “It’s time to let the young people take over. Let’s see what she can do. I think she’s smart. She’s level-headed. She has a good background. She’s got good experience,” Graham said. The Republican nominee will face the Rev. Will Boyd, a minister and engineer from Hoover, who defeated two opponents in Tuesday’s primary. Boyd was the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor in 2018 but lost to Republican Will Ainsworth. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
Dale Strong, Casey Wardynski in Alabama House runoff
County official Dale Strong and former Huntsville school Superintendent Casey Wardynski have advanced to a runoff in the Republican primary for the congressional seat given up by U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks in Alabama. Both ran on issues that are reliably popular among Alabama Republicans: support for gun rights, opposition to abortion and support for former President Donald Trump and his policies. Brooks gave up the position to run for the seat being vacated by Republican Sen. Richard Shelby. The winner of the June 21 runoff will face the Democratic nominee in the reliably Republican district in November. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
Steve Marshall wins GOP nod for Alabama Attorney General
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall has won against challenger Harry Still in Tuesday’s Republican primary race, WSFA reported. While results are unofficial, Marshall was leading Still with 90% of the vote, as of 9:30 p.m., with about 30% of precincts reporting. Marshall face Democrat Wendell Major in the general election.
