Virginia Martin

Everyone Knew It Was Coming, But Sessions’ Ouster From the Justice Department so Soon After the Mid-Terms Landed With a Boom

Barely 12 hours after the smoke had cleared from the 2018 mid-term elections, another political bomb exploded Wednesday afternoon when news came that U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions had resigned at the request of President Donald Trump. That Sessions was on his way out was not a shock. The former U.S. senator from Mobile had been one of the first well-known supporters of Trump in the presidential campaign. But shortly after he took the cabinet position, he became a thorn in Trump’s side by recusing himself from supervising the investigation into collusion by Russia during the 2016 election. Trump chafed at the move by Sessions both publicly and privately, accusing Sessions of being disloyal and not acting in Trump’s defense. The rift grew during the two years Sessions served in the post. Sessions’ departure had been expected for months, though political advisers told Trump to wait until after the mid-terms. He did so, barely — Sessions was told by Chief of Staff Mike Kelly to hand in his resignation on Wednesday afternoon, and he did. Reaction to Sessions’ stepping down was quick, most of it praising Sessions or speculating on his next moves and what they could mean for politics in the state. Read more. BirminghamWatch Recommends: A Roundup of Stories on Sessions’ Firing

Alabama Residents Protest Sessions’ Departure (WBHM)

Jeff Sessions Executed the Agenda of a President Who Could Not Look Past a Betrayal (New York Times)

Jeff Sessions Pushed out After a Year of Attacks From Trump (Associated Press)

Former AL Senator Jeff Sessions Resigns as Attorney General (WBHM)

How Sessions’s Firing Could Affect the Russia Investigation (New York Times)

‘You’re Fired:’ A Timeline of Team Trump Departures (Washington Post)

The Latest Drama in Trump’s Slow-Motion Saturday Night Massacre (The Atlantic)

Jeff Sessions Will Run for Senate in 2020, Analyst Says (AL.com)

Two New Lawmakers to Join Incumbents in Jefferson Legislative Delegation

Incumbent Alabama lawmakers serving Jefferson County all won re-election in Tuesday’s general election voting, and two new members who ran for open seats, will join the Jefferson County delegation. Republican Senate candidate Dan Roberts and Democratic House candidate Neil Rafferty will be a part of a large freshman group in the 2019 Alabama Legislature after 22 House members and 10 senators retired in 2018 or resigned to seek other offices or positions. The addition of Roberts and Rafferty, a Republican and a Democrat, does not change the political party makeup of the county delegation since they replaced a Republican and a Democrat. Read more.

GOP Strengthens Majorities in Alabama Statehouse. House now Has 1 White Democrat.

The Alabama Statehouse got a little more red Tuesday, with the GOP picking up one seat in the Senate and likely five in the House, according to unofficial results and media reports. The number of white Democrats in the Alabama House dropped from six to one — newly elected Neil Rafferty of Birmingham. In the Senate, the number of white Democrats held steady at one. Republicans have had a supermajority in the Statehouse since 2010, but the additional seats may give the party more confidence to take on potentially controversial issues. “They already could shut down debate, they could move bills,” retired Athens State University political science professor Jess Brown said Wednesday. “Democrats could make a little noise on the fringes, but Republicans ruled the roost. That will remain the same.” Now, Brown said, they have “a little breathing room from public opinion” and more leeway to take up a statewide gas tax increase — something Republicans have flirted with for several years — and possibly a lottery. Read more.

Election Night in Alabama: Unofficial Statewide Results in 10 Top Races

Number of counties reporting: 67 out of 67 Governor:  Walt Maddox (D) 40.36% Kay Ivey (R) 59.49% Chief Justice: Bob Vance Jr. (D) 42.52% Tom Parker (R) 57.42% Attorney General:  Joseph Siegelman (D) 41.11% Steve Marshall (R) 58.82% Secretary of State: Heather Milam (D) 38.89% John H. Merrill (R) 61.05% Lt. Governor:  Will Boyd (D) 38.65% Will Ainsworth (R) 61.29% Public Service Commission Place 1 Cara Y. McClure (D) 39.48% Jeremy H. Oden (R) 60.46% Public Service Commission Place 2 Kari Powell (D) 39.85% Chris "Chip" Beeker Jr. (R) 60.09% Auditor Miranda Karrine Joseph (D) 39.46% Jim Ziegler (R) 60.46% State Treasurer John MacMillan (R) 97.15% Write-in 2.85% Commissioner of Agriculture & Industries Rick Pate (R) 97.20% Write-in 2.80% All of Alabama's Republicans in the House of Representatives won re-election: Rep. Bradley Byrne is at 63.24%, Rep. Martha Roby is at 61.43%, Rep. Mike Rogers is at 63.74%, Rep. Robert Aderholt is at 79.798%, Rep. Mo Brooks is at 61.06%, and Rep. Gary Palmer is at 69.22%. Democrat Terri Sewell was unopposed and got 97.80%. Check out more results at AlabamaVotes.Gov. 

Alabama Voters Keep Republicans, Incumbents in State Offices

Republicans prevailed in Tuesday’s statewide races for Alabama’s top elected offices, including lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, auditor and two public service commission positions. Alabama voters turned out in higher-than-expected numbers to vote on a lengthy ballot that included statewide offices, state legislative seats, judicial candidates and mid-term federal races for Congressional seats. Voters supported Republicans and incumbents over Democratic challengers by margins that averaged about 60 percent for the Republicans to about 40 percent for the Democrats. Read more.

Jefferson County Elects its First Black Sheriff and District Attorney

There’s a new sheriff in town and his name is Mark Pettway. The Democratic nominee unseated the incumbent to become the first black sheriff in Jefferson County. Hale has been in office since 1998. “It’s a great day and I’m glad,” Pettway said after receiving a congratulatory phone call from Hale. Asked what set him apart from Hale, Pettway said he understood what the issues really were. “The issue was school safety,” Pettway said Tuesday night at Henderson’s in Midfield. “The issue was making sure we bridge the gap between law enforcement and the community. The issue is trying to help those who are incarcerated. We want to stop the revolving door. I understood the issues.” Read about more Jefferson County races.

Parker Recaptures His Seat as Alabama Chief Justice, Winning Against Challenger Vance

Circuit Court Judge Bob Vance Jr. relishes being the other guy, the one who’s not making the headlines. “The problems that we really need to confront need a serious-minded person who can quietly and professionally deal with those problems,” he said at his campaign party in Birmingham. “We don’t need the drama or the theatrics of another Roy Moore. In order to get the job done and deal with the problems we’ve actually got, we need that kind of quiet, professional attitude to deal with them. That’s why I don’t have a problem with those kinds of descriptions.” Unfortunately for Vance, he has another description after his bid for chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court – runner-up. With 53 of 67 counties reporting, Vance trailed Republican candidate Tom Parker 639,619 to 374,233, or 63.05 percent to 36.89 percent. Look here for vote results in races for seats on the Supreme Court, Court of Criminal Appeals and Court of Civil Appeals.

Jefferson County Voters Deal out Upsets With Wins by Pettway, Carr

Mark Pettway has won the Jefferson County sheriff’s race. According to Jefferson County results, with 97.7 percent of precincts reporting at 11 p.m., he was leading incumbent Sheriff Mike Hale in the race 51.4 percent to 48.6 percent. Danny Carr has claimed victory in his race for district attorney. He was leading incumbent District Attorney Mike Anderton 56.7 percent to 43.2 percent. Incumbent Jefferson County Commissioner Joe Knight is leading in his re-election race 62.3 percent to challenger J.T. Smallwood’s 37.7 percent. Find results in all the Jefferson County races Read more.

Woodfin Calls for Civility at City Hall; Councilor’s Criticism Continues

Mayor Randall Woodfin called for greater civility between his office and Birmingham City Council on Tuesday, following weeks of escalating tension. The tension culminated with Woodfin and most of his staff being absent from the council’s Oct. 30 meeting. While calling for civility, Woodfin also announced plans to reduce his staff’s presence at council meetings. He said this is an effort to improve efficiency and to spend more time on community outreach. Last week’s absence of Woodfin and his staff drew considerable criticism from councilors, some of whom called it “a slap in the face to the constituents of the 99 neighborhoods.” Read more.

Legislative Seats Up for Grabs in Election

All of the seats in the Legislature are on the ballot today, including seven Senate seats on the Jefferson County delegation and 17 House of Representatives seats that represent parts of the county. Find results in the legislative races.