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The mood was jovial Tuesday night as the results were called for U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell’s race at her joint watch party with Jefferson County Sheriff Mark Pettway at City Club in downtown Birmingham, but she says there’s still work to be done as she heads into her eighth term.
“We can be jubilant today, but we have to roll up our sleeves tomorrow,” she said. “The fight is not over until we get rid of partisan gerrymandering; the fight is ever present.”
She and Pettway joined an eager crowd of about 100 guests in downtown Birmingham.
Throughout the night, an excited Sewell kept attendees updated on Democrats’ progress in the polls in Alabama and nationwide.
Sewell said her victory over Republican candidate Ammie Akin for the 7th District seat represents the power of collective movement. Sewell has served the district, which includes her hometown of Selma, parts of Birmingham, parts of Montgomery and the state’s Black Belt region, since 2011.
“This victory tonight is a victory for the people,” she said. “I think that if any district understands the challenges and the importance of the right to vote, it’s the districts of Alabama. Folks came out because they were angry. They were proving a point, and that was that our voices matter, representation matters. People often say that the three most powerful words in our Constitution are ‘We The People.’ I’m just so proud to represent this district.”
She told the crowd that she will continue to work for more resources and better opportunities for her constituents.
“It’s not about zero representation or some representation, it’s about fair representation,” she said. “There are so many federal resources that come to our state, and they are not equitably distributed. I can tell you that for a fact.”
Sewell said nationwide results reflected America’s dissatisfaction with the current administration.
“We are on a roll, and it’s all because the American people have spoken loud and clear,” she said. “This administration’s corruption has got to go.”
Redistricting is personal
Sewell’s reelection comes on the heels of the Alabama Legislature’s swift move to redraw the state’s congressional districts after the U.S. Supreme Court gutted the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965 with a ruling in the Louisiana vs. Callais case.
“I took the redistricting very personally,” she said. “It’s hard not to. I’ve sat in so many economic development meetings where the big elephant in the room was if the state of
Alabama was still the state of Alabama of old or had we turned a corner. So many of us who sat in those rooms trying to convince industry to come and relocate to Alabama said, ‘Oh, we’ve changed.’ It was heartbreaking to see the state Legislature within 10 days totally take us all the way back.”
She told supporters at the watch party that her victory sent a loud message to state politicians. “They could not cancel our voice,” Sewell told the cheering crowd. “The voices of Black Alabamians will be heard, and we will fight to make sure we’ll be heard in this democracy.”
Voice from the crowd
Those voices include people such as party attendee and content creator LaDarrius Hutcherson, who said injustice spurred him to use his platform to get involved.
“For some reason, this year it’s just been a new awakening when it comes to voting,” he said. “That just sparked something in me. I just have learned a lot from just being around different initiatives. I’ve been educating myself and doing my research. We should be in a place where we want to learn and understand what’s going on because if you sit around and you don’t, you’re allowing things to happen. I wanted to be a part of the change.”
District Court Judge Ruby Davis, who was also in attendance, said voting is an imperative.
“I feel like elections for us as African Americans are more than just a right; we have an obligation because of the blood, sweat, tears and our ancestors’ sacrifice for us. I take election night very seriously. … This is my heartbeat. I believe in democracy, and I’m happy to exercise my right to vote.”
Davis, who is also the first lady of Sardis Baptist Church, said she’s excited about Democrats’ gaining a majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
“I’m excited about the blue wave,” she said. “I think it’s time, and I think it speaks to the way America feels about where we are and the current state of America.”
Hutcherson said he was initially concerned about adding political commentary to his content, which usually consists of food and entertainment reviews, but he thinks it’s important to use his voice in this moment.
“I was, like, I didn’t know if that fit my platform,” he said. “Now I understand my platform and the responsibility that I have. The responsibility is to continue to push my community forward. I have to use my voice because it’s a strong voice and people listen to me.”
Davis said that she’s looking forward to Sewell continuing her work for District 7.
“She’s someone that I can pick up the phone and reach out to,” she said. “You wouldn’t imagine that, given the work that she has to do. To have a congresswoman who really cares and really wants to help your area means a lot to me.
“She’s the best to ever do it. I just love her and everything she represents.”
Sewell, who will also serve as the chair of the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee in her new term, said the redistricting fight is not over.
“I think that there is nothing stopping the state Legislature from giving it another try,” she said. “It’s not lost on me that they didn’t have time to come after me the same way they came after (Rep. Shomari Figures of Alabama’s Congressional District 2).” Figures, a Democrat, won reelection although the district was drawn to lean Republican.
“We’re going to have to muscle up the same energy and get folks to come out. When we show up and vote with the numbers we have, we win big.”
Akin, Sewell’s Republican opponent, in a Facebook post Tuesday night thanked her supporters and campaign staff, who she said “packed every day to its fullest.”
“We made great strides over a short process, but we’ve opened the eyes to District 7,” Akin wrote. “We’ve met the greatest people on earth. I’ve been preached to, prayed over and anointed with oil. And I have personally hugged hundreds of people across the greatest district.”
She added, “I am not finished.”
This story is part of a BirminghamWatch-Birmingham Times collaboration. Daniel Gaddy contributed to this report.