The Race for Mayor: The Runoff
Birmingham voters elected a new mayor on Tuesday (1/19). Jefferson County Commissioner William Bell’s 54% of the vote beat Patrick Cooper’s 46%, with roughly 40% of registered voters going to the polls. We’ll have analysis from Birmingham Weekly’s Kyle Whitmire on All Things Considered Wednesday afternoon.
On Friday, January 15th, both Bell and Cooper spent an hour in the studio fielding questions for listeners.
This is Jefferson County Commissioner William Bell’s fourth run for the mayor’s office. Bell tells WBHM’s Tanya Ott that better education and job creation are key to moving the city forward. So is reducing crime.
Bell wants to establish a venture capital fund to help university researchers bring their ideas to the marketplace. Hear more about that in an
extended interview.
Patrick Cooper came in second in the 2007 mayor’s race. He is selling himself as a political newcomer, a clean break from the politicians that have dominated Birmingham’s political scene. Speaking with WBHM’s Bradley George, Cooper says one of his priorities as mayor would be jobs for the chronically unemployed. He plans to put them to work taking care of the city’s parks and working in the library system. Patrick Cooper says despite Birmingham’s recent budget issues, he knows how to pay for his jobs plan.
After decisive loss at Alabama Mercedes plants, powerful auto union vows to return and win
Newly elected UAW President Shawn Fain said the union will return to Mercedes and will press on with efforts to organize about 150,000 workers at more than a dozen auto factories across the nation.
Gulf South states among U.S. leaders for juvenile life without parole sentences, study shows
A youth sentencing study shows Alabama and Mississippi are among just four states that top the nation in new juvenile life without parole sentences since 2012.
Workers at Alabama’s Mercedes plants vote against joining a union
The workers voted 56% against the union, according to tallies released by the National Labor Relations Board, which ran the election.
Taylor Hunnicutt is championing her home state with debut album ‘Alabama Sound’
Alabama offers a diverse symphony of swampy rock, swaggering blues, murky country, and bone-rattling soul. It’s a sound singer-songwriter Taylor Hunnicutt recently reimagined on her debut album, Alabama Sound, which is out now.
UAB building among Alabama’s first to feature ‘bird safe’ glass
Advocates hope the new glass will prevent window collisions, a leading causes of bird mortality.
Researchers look into community health impact of wood pellet production in rural Mississippi
Brown University and Tougaloo College students are testing for potential air and noise pollution near the Drax wood pellet plant in Gloster, Mississippi.
