One Birmingham City Council Seat Goes to a Runoff; Two Incumbents Returned to the Council
By Robert Carter and Solomon Crenshaw Jr.
One Birmingham City Council seat will be up for a runoff after none of the candidates won more than 50 percent of the votes in Tuesday’s balloting.
Wardine Towers Alexander will face Ray Brooks on Nov. 19 in a runoff for the council District 7 seat. Alexander won 42.41% of the vote to challenger Ray Brooks’ 30.88%.
Two other races were decided Tuesday. Crystal Smitherman will return as council District 6 councilor, having garnered 51.50% of the vote in a seven-candidate field. In the District 1 race, Clinton Woods will return to the council, with 71.27% of the vote in his district.
The three propositions to renew separate ad valorem taxes all passed by wide margins, with those voting yes in each race amounting to about 90%.
Reporting of full results was delayed until Wednesday because of an error in the handling of electronic machine memory cards at three different precincts.
The cards from the Martha Gaskins School, Robinson Elementary School and Five Points West precincts were sealed inside boxes that contained the paper ballots filled out by voters. Officials with the Birmingham City Clerk’s office had to get a court order Wednesday morning to allow them to open the box and add those votes to the total.
With almost 99 percent of the vote counted, here are vote totals and percentages.
City Council D1
Sherman Collins Jr. 670 27.07
Haki Jamaal Muhammad 41 1.66
Clinton Woods 1,764 71.27
City Council D6
Willine Body 50 2.00
Carlos Chaverst 349 13.99
LaTanya Millhouse 265 10.60
Clarence Muhammad 127 5.08
Crystal Smitherman 1,287 51.50
Keith O. Williams 41 1.64
Onoyemi “Oni” Williams 380 15.21
City Council D7
Wardine Towers Alexander 1,159 42.41
Ray Brooks 844 30.88
Lonnie Franklin Malone 730 26.71
School Taxes
Proposition 1
Yes 14,144 90.02
No 1,568 9.98
Proposition 2
Yes 14,127 90.03
No 1,564 9.97
Proposition 3
Yes 13,992 89.19
No 1,696 10.81
Birmingham Council Reallocates Unused CrossPlex Funds to Repave Roads, Under Protest
01-21-2020
The Birmingham City Council voted Tuesday to reallocate money from a completed capital project at the Birmingham CrossPlex to citywide road repaving, rebuffing the protests of District 8 Councilor Steven Hoyt, who called the proposal “unfair.”
Alabama Representatives Flip Votes on Two Measures Involving Cleanup of PFAS Pollution
01-13-2020
Alabama’s representatives in the U.S. House flipped votes on two issues last week concerning regulation of PFAS chemicals, which have been linked to cancer. These chemicals have been found in drinking water and land in northern Alabama.
Jefferson County Commission Delays Vote on Fee for Card Payments
01-10-2020
The Jefferson County chief financial officer says discussion about a 1% debit and credit card convenience fee should be tabled for another two weeks.
Education Town Hall Set for Jan. 15
01-10-2020
A town hall meeting on the status of education in Birmingham has been set for Jan. 15, 6-8 p.m.
Jefferson County Commission Moves to Preserve Downtown Jail Where Martin Luther King Jr. Was Held
01-10-2020
The Jefferson County Commission Thursday took the first steps toward acknowledging and preserving remnants of the jail where Martin Luther King Jr. was held.
