Special election dates set for Montgomery’s House District 74
Governor Kay Ivey announced today that she has set the primary election to fill the vacancy left by Representative Dimitri Polizos. Polizos passed away suddenly after a massive heart attack last week. The general election will be held on Tuesday, June 11, 2019 if a runoff is necessary than it will be held on Tuesday, August 27, 2019 if not, that will be the date of the general election. If a runoff is required than the general will be held Tuesday, November 12, 2019. “In order to ensure that House District 74 is equally represented in the Alabama Legislature, I have set a timeline to elect a new representative,” Governor Ivey said. “Dimitri was, without a doubt, a pillar of the Montgomery community and will be missed by all who had the privilege of knowing him. To honor his legacy, I encourage all citizens that live in this district to participate in our valued democratic process.” The deadline for qualifying with major political parties is Tuesday, April 9, 2019 at 5:00 p.m. The deadline for all independent candidates and/or minor parties is Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at 5:00 p.m. House District 74 represents a portion of Montgomery County.
Republican Parker Moore wins special House District 4 race
Republican Parker Moore won the special election for House District 4 Tuesday evening, defeating Democrat Juanita Healy and Independent Polan “Pete” Willis in the race fill the vacancy created when former Rep. Micky Hammon pleaded guilty to felony mail fraud. House District 4 includes Limestone and Morgan counties. Following his win, Moore posted a thank you note to his supporters on Facebook. Thank you District 4! I appreciate the trust and confidence you have shown in me. I look forward to representing you as a conservative Republican. Tonight is just one step; we have one more election to go on June 5th! Moore’s victory will be short-lived as the terms expire in November and he must seek re-election in order to serve a full term. He’s already slated to face fellow Republican Tom Fredricks in the June 5 primary for the seat. The winner of that race will go on to face Healy in the Nov. 6 general election. Independent Willis will join the two should he meet the signature requirement necessary to be included on the ballot.
In special election to replace Micky Hammon, single digit turnout expected
A special election is being held in Morgan and Limestone counties Tuesday to replace former Rep. Micky Hammon for the Alabama House District 4 seat. Election officials say they expect voter turnout to be in the single digits. “I think people are just set on June 5 and I think they’ve just forgotten about this one,” chief clerk in the Morgan County Probate Office, Kate Terry told Decatur Daily. Hammon was removed from office last year after pleading guilty to using campaign funds for personal expenses in September. He was then ordered to forfeit nearly $51,000 for reimbursement to those who had donated to his campaign. Hammon was then sentenced to three months in prison, and three years supervised released for felony mail fraud in February of this year. Three candidates, Democrat Juanita Allen Healy, Republican Parker Duncan Moore and independent Polan “Pete” Willis Jr. are seeking to replace hammon. The winner of the special election must immediately begin campaigning again for the November election, to win a full four-year term. Moore will face Tom Fredricks in the June 5 primary, although he defeated Fredricks in the special February Republican runoff. Healy is chairwoman of the “One Decatur” comprehensive plan project, and has been a Decatur resident for 13 years. Lifelong Decatur resident, Moore is also a member of the Development Council with Huntsville Hospital, and is currently the North Alabama Marketing Representative for Encore Rehabilitation. Independant Willis is sending in a petition to get on the ballot. A business owner, Willis has operated an Aerospace Manufacturing firm in Priceville since 1982.
Alabamians cast ballots Tuesday in special elections in two legislative districts
Voters in some parts of Montgomery, Ala. will head to polls Tuesday to cast their ballots in a special election for Senate District 26, which includes much of North, South and West Montgomery. Democrat and Montgomery City Councilman David Burkette — who defeated John Knight during the Democratic primary election runoff back in February — faces Republican Darrell “DJ” Johnson in the race to fill the seat former Sen. Quinton Ross left vacant when took over as President of Alabama State University. Meanwhile, in Limestone and Morgan Counties voters will cast ballots for either Republican Parker Duncan Moore, Democrat Juanita Healy or Independent Polan “Pete” Willis to fill the House District 4 seat that was vacated when former Rep. Micky Hammon pleaded guilty to felony mail fraud. Both the Senate and House positions will be short-lived, as the terms expire in November and Tuesday’s winners must seek re-election in order to serve a full term.
Roy Moore to hold press conference on campaign allegations
Former Alabama Chief Justice and Republican U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore, along with his attorneys, will hold a press conference regarding what they call “false” allegations of sexual misconduct made against him during the campaign for U.S. Senate last fall. Moore has vehemently denied the allegations against him, calling them “politically motivated,” “completely false” and “malicious.” This will be Moore’s first news conference since December’s special election where Democrat Doug Jones bested him, thus becoming the first Democratic U.S. Senator from Alabama in a quarter-century. Earlier this month Moore filed a counterclaim for slander and defamation against Leigh Corfman, who accused him of making unwanted sexual advances after shed filed a defamation lawsuit against him in January. Moore claims Corman’s allegations caused “irrevocable damage” to his reputation “that affected the outcome of the Senate election in December 2017.” The press conference will be held at the Etowah County Commission Chambers at 3 p.m.
Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg: ‘significant number’ of fake news attempts in Ala. special election
During an interview with The New York Times on Wednesday Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, said the popular platform worked to shut down “fake news” during Alabama’s contentious special election in December between Republican Roy Moore and Democrat Doug Jones. Zuckerberg explained a number of Macedonian accounts attempted to the influence the outcome of the race. “In last year, in 2017 with the special election in Alabama, we deployed some new (artificial intelligence) tools to identify fake accounts and false news, and we found a significant number of Macedonian accounts that were trying to spread false news, and were able to eliminate those,” Zuckerberg said to The Times. “And that, actually, is something I haven’t talked about publicly before, so you’re the first people I’m telling about that.” Ultimately, Jones bested Moore in the race and went on to become Alabama’s junior U.S. Senator replacing Jeff Sessions who vacated the seat to become the U.S. Attorney General under President Donald Trump. Kayla Moore, Moore’s wife, posted on Facebook Thursday that they did not know about the Macedonian efforts. The were “news to us” she said. “The entire world was watching the race so there’s no telling what went on, but we were simply trying to run an Alabama campaign with the help of conservatives all across the state and the nation,” said Kayla.
Alabama Senate election results: Roy Moore vs Doug Jones
Democrat Doug Jones has bested Republican Roy Moore in a nail-biter of an Election night in race to fill the U.S. Senate seat previously held by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. As of 9:38 p.m. CT Jones has 0.8 percentage points over Moore with 93 percent of precincts fully reporting. The Associated Press called the race in favor of Jones with 89 percent of precincts reporting. Alabama is a deeply conservative, red state. But Moore has found himself under fire since The Washington Post published an explosive report on Nov. 9 with the accounts of four women who claim he sexually pursued them when he was in his 30s and they were in their teens. Since that time, a total of nine women have levied accusations against Moore. While Moore has vehemently denied the allegations, his campaign has remained mired in controversy, creating an opening for a possible upset by Jones. Polls closed at 7 p.m. CT. Updated at 9:38 p.m. CT.
Doug Jones, Roy Moore cast their ballots in the special election
Republican Senate hopeful Roy Moore, following his Election Day tradition, rode to the polls on horseback Tuesday. Wearing a black cowboy hat, a t-shirt, and blue jeans, Moore arrived at the Gallant Volunteer Fire Department on a horse named “Sassy” to cast his ballot with his wife Kayla. Afterward he told reporters that voters “ought to go out and vote their conscience, and we’ll have a tremendous turnout.” Meanwhile, his opponent, Democratic candidate Doug Jones cast his ballot at Brookwood Baptist Church in Mountain Brook. Following his vote, he told reporters Alabamians have the chance to reject the embarrassment that Moore would bring upon the state. “In Alabama we have come so far with too many things, and there is saying: ‘Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.’ Alabama is not going to let that shame happen again,” Jones said. Jones continued, “This is an important time in Alabama’s history, and we feel very confident in where we are and how this is going to turn out. More importantly, we feel so good about what we have done and what we have said to the people of Alabama and to the people of the United States.” The polls close statewide at 7:00 p.m. CT.
Angi Stalnaker: 7 brutally honest thoughts on the Senate special election
I am a political consultant with no professional involvement in the Roy Moore vs Doug Jones races, but I watch elections like a football player watches the Super Bowl and the following are the thoughts of a Republican consultant on the U.S. Senate campaign: 1. These are two very strangely run campaigns. There seems to be a lack of a cohesive strategy on both sides. Images of spaghetti noodles sliding down the walls of both campaign headquarters come to mind. 2. All campaigns are local. The Jones campaign seems to have done a great job in the last 2 weeks of organizing supporters on a county by county and, in some places, a precinct by precinct level. Democrats in Alabama have always been much better at this than Republicans. The question remains as to whether it happened too little too late for the Jones camp. If the timing was sufficient, that could make a real difference considering Moore has not pulled the trigger on his grassroots organization. 3. Beyond the scandals, the WTH moments in these campaigns have been plentiful. Steve Bannon, a media mogul and Harvard graduate who has never lived in Alabama, comes to Alabama to tell Moore voters to reject the opinions of media moguls and to reject the opinions of people who are not from Alabama and then proceeds to explain that being a Harvard graduate makes him superior to University of Alabama graduates. Ummmm… what? The Jones camp gets Barack Obama to do a robocall, but obviously has a bad phone list because they called several long term Republicans which did nothing but serve to ensure that those voters raced to the polls at 7 a.m. to cast a ballot against Jones. 4. The TV ads. At least those will be over in about 10 hours. I don’t know how many more times we can see Doug Jones standing in that monotone room before we lose it. And Moore’s ads… who decided that the creepy head turn shot was a necessity to end the Moore ads. It looked like an SNL skit gone wrong. 5. Policy. What policy? Neither candidate has said much of anything specific about policy. Beyond the surface statements of patriotism, pro-military and a few rousing renditions of God Bless America, neither campaign has done anything to let me know what their candidates actually want to do in the US Senate. This is made more bizarre by the fact that each candidate seems to believe they know what the other would do, if elected. Psychic hotline anyone? 6. Human decency took a nosedive. This campaign season has been one of the dirtiest I have ever witnessed. The only thing we are missing is allegations of, well, I don’t guess we are missing anything. It will take Alabamians a long time to get the bad taste out of their mouth from this election, regardless of the outcome. 7. The final interviews are serious WTH moments. Moore decided to wrap up his campaign with an interview from a 12 year old girl? Who in the hell thought that was a good idea? And Jones? Dude, nobody watches CNN in Alabama. Let’s all go vote and then wake up tomorrow and be glad it’s over. May 2018 have less WTH moments! ••• Angi Stalnaker is an Alabama native who, as a political consultant, has worked on numerous statewide, legislative and constitutional amendment races for conservative causes and candidates. For more information about her visit Virtus Solutions.
Kay Ivey sets special election dates for House District 21
Gov. Kay Ivey has scheduled a special election to fill the seat left vacant by the sudden death of Meridianville-Republican, former state Rep. Jim Patterson earlier this month. Ivey set the special election Alabama House District 21 for Tuesday, January 9, 2018. If necessary, a runoff will take place Tuesday, March 27, 2018 and the general election Tuesday, June 12, 2018. If there is no need based on number of qualifying candidates for a primary, the general election will be held Tuesday, March 27, 2018. If a runoff is not necessary, the general election will be Tuesday, March 27, 2018. Patterson, who died from a heart attack on Oct. 2, had represented the district since 2010. “I promised the people of Madison County that I would do all I could to help them move forward after the loss of Jim, who was not only a true public servant, but also a loving husband and father,” Ivey said. “Choosing our elected officials is a central component of our government on every plain whether that be on the national, state or local level, and I encourage all those that live in House District 21 to participate in this special election.” The deadline for qualifying with major political parties is Thursday, October 26, 2017 at 5:00 p.m. The deadline for all independent candidates and/or minor parties is Tuesday, January 9, 2017 at 5:00 p.m. House District 21 represents a portion of Madison County.
Kay Ivey calls special election to fill Quinton Ross’ vacated Senate seat
Governor Kay Ivey on Monday set the special election dates for Alabama Senate District 26, which was previously held by Quinton Ross. Ivey set the primary for Tuesday, December 12, 2017, runoff Tuesday, February 27, 2018 and the general election Tuesday, May 15, 2018. If there is no need based on number of qualifying candidates for a primary, the general election will be held Tuesday, February 27, 2018. If a runoff is not necessary, the general election will be held Tuesday, February 27, 2018. Last month the Alabama State University Board of Trustees named Ross to be the next president of the University. “As we look forward to Dr. Quinton Ross taking his experience to Alabama State University, I also want to ensure that the people of Montgomery have the opportunity to select their representative,” Ivey said. “Elected representation is a central component of our government, and I encourage all those that live in Senate District 26 to participate in this special election.” The deadline for qualifying with major political parties is Tuesday, October 10, 2017 at 5:00 p.m. The deadline for all independent candidates and/or minor parties is December 12, 2017 at 5:00 p.m. Senate District 26 represents a portion of Montgomery County.
Alabama Senate race a choice between incumbent, firebrands
The Republican race for Jeff Sessions‘ old Senate seat in Alabama will test which brand of conservatism voters prefer: The polished incumbent backed by the D.C. establishment or firebrand hard-liners seeking an upset in the closely watched race. Incumbent Alabama Sen. Luther Strange was temporarily appointed to the Senate seat in February and is backed by a super political action committee tied to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. His challengers in the Aug. 15 primary include Alabama Rep. Mo Brooks, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, and former state Chief Justice Roy Moore, who was twice removed from his duties after losing battles on gay marriage and the public display of the Ten Commandments. “I’m running because I think it’s time to bring some common-sense conservative solutions to our country. A lot of people talk about being conservative. I’m running on a conservative record, actually taking on difficult problems,” Strange told a Republican club in a Birmingham suburb. In campaign stops across the state, Strange touts his own hard-line conservative credentials, including suing former President Barack Obama‘s administration over a federal health care law requirement that an Alabama-based Catholic broadcaster provide contraceptive coverage. As the state’s attorney general, he also challenged President Barack Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan and joined with other Senate Republicans to force a vote on the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch. Republicans led by McConnell of Kentucky have worked aggressively to defeat fringe candidates in GOP Senate primaries ever since a series of messy primaries led to losing general election Senate races in 2010 and 2012. “Luther Strange is the only candidate who can be trusted to fight for President Trump’s agenda in the U.S. Senate,” said Chris Pack, a spokesman for the super PAC Senate Leadership Fund. The bankrolling has allowed advertisements on behalf of Strange to dominate airwaves ahead of the primary, part of it in blistering ads accusing Brooks of lukewarm support of President Donald Trump. It has become a rallying cry by opponents against Strange in a race that has become all about hatred of the so-called Washington swamp. Brooks said the Washington “swamp critters” were putting millions of dollars behind Strange, their favored candidate. “The swamp is fighting back,” Brooks said. Strange brushes off the criticism as “silly” — noting that he has been in office for only a few months. Joe Akin, a 79-year-old engineer and industrial designer, said he likes Moore’s values but wondered if he had “gone too far” to be effective in Washington. “I’d say it’s down to Moore and Strange,” he said. “I’m for Strange for his stances and his way of presenting himself,” Akin said. Strange, then attorney general, was appointed to Sessions’ seat in February by then-Gov. Robert Bentley, who resigned two months later amid fallout from an alleged affair with a top staffer. Bentley had planned his own run for Senate in 2018, but when he stepped down, the state’s new governor, Kay Ivey, moved the special election to this year, setting off a demolition derby among Republican contenders. Strange’s challengers said the appointment was tainted because Strange’s office was in charge of investigating the accusations against Bentley. Strange said he did Bentley no favors. The 6-foot-9 (2-meter) Strange, sometimes called Big Luther, attended Tulane University on a basketball scholarship and graduated from Tulane Law School. If Washington is a swamp, Strange already spent some time swimming in it. He worked as a lobbyist for a number of years, including heading governmental relations for Sonat Offshore, an offshore oil and gas drilling company. He ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor in 2006 and won the office of attorney general in 2010 and 2014. As attorney general, Strange had to navigate a gauntlet of politically prickly situations that alienated him from a number of powerful political figures in Alabama. He angered casino owners when he attempted to shut down electronic bingo operations, arguing the slot-machine lookalikes were against state law. His office’s public corruption unit opened an investigation into whether the state’s powerful Republican house speaker had abused his office. Strange recused himself at the start of the probe since he had used the speaker’s printing company for his campaign materials. The investigation ended with the speaker’s conviction on ethics charges in a trial that saw testimony from the state’s former Republican governor and influential GOP donors. “If there’s anybody willing to take on the status quo or powerful forces, it’s been me,” Strange said. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
