Birmingham Board of Education, District 5 Name: Buford Lee Burks Date of birth: 62 Residence: College Hills Political experience: None Professional experience: Teacher, Booker T. Washington Junior College of Business, 1982; Birmingham high schools, since 1997. Civic experience: Member, NAACP, SCLC and National Action Network; received a 2017 Community Service Award from NAACP as author
As Alabamians go to the polls Tuesday for a special U.S. Senate primary election, the state has the most registered voters in its history, including a record-setting roster of new voters. “It’s unprecedented,” Secretary of State John Merrill said last week. The state’s tally of 3,283,573 registered voters represents a peak for Alabama, which has 3.7 million residents of voting age. Of the 3.28 million, 773,727 are new voters who registered in the past two-plus years since Merrill took office in January 2015. But, even as Alabamians were registering in record numbers, a voter “refresh” conducted by the Secretary of State’s Office in early 2017 has resulted in some confusion about voters being moved to inactive lists and concerns that the voter refresh will become a voter list purge. Read more.
The Road to the Capitol Has Been a Strange Trip, No Matter Who Wins Aug. 14: In Their Own Words: Alabama Senate Contenders on Their Campaigns (Montgomery Advertiser) Aug. 14: In Alabama’s Senate Race, Contenders Fight Over Who Is Trump’s Biggest Fan (Reuters) Aug. 14: Despite Trump’s Support, Alabama Senator Struggles to a Primary Finish
The nine Republican and seven Democratic candidates in Alabama’s U.S. Senate special election have raised almost $5 million to spend on Tuesday’s party primaries. Republicans have compiled just more than $4.5 million, with incumbent Luther Strange raking in $2,914,746 in his bid to retain the seat. Strange’s latest fundraising report with the Federal Election Commission
The opposing sides in the ongoing Gardendale school-separation case have thrown their first punches in the second round of their fight. Attorneys for the Gardendale Board of Education and the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund have filed briefs with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in Atlanta, arguing from opposite sides why they think the ruling by District Judge Madeline Haikala to give Gardendale control of two elementary schools should be thrown out. Read more.
Aug. 10, 2017 – On Thursday morning, WBHM and the Birmingham Business Journal held a mayoral debate that featured three of the 12 candidates in the race – incumbent William Bell and challengers Chris Woods and Randall Woodfin – a restriction that drew criticism from the candidates who were not invited to take part. According to WBHM, the candidates were selected to participate in the debate based on polling data, specifically, a WBRC Fox 6 News poll that sampled 214 registered Birmingham voters. In the poll, 54 percent of likely voters cited Bell as their first choice, with Woods at 17 percent and Woodfin at 14 percent. Some candidates who were not included in the debate took to social media to express their frustration. “They use the same flawed data polling that FOX 6 use don’t waste your time!” (sic) wrote candidate Frank Matthews on the event’s Facebook page. Philemon Hill, another candidate, wrote on Facebook that the debate was skewed in Bell’s favor, calling it “a bought event” that was “a controlled environment so Bell can feel comfortable.” He also took issue with the event’s scheduling – at 8:30 a.m. on the first day of school for Birmingham City Schools. “Holding a mayoral forum at the same time … education can’t be a priority for any involved party,” he wrote. Gigi Douban, the news director at WBHM, called such claims “ridiculous,” noting that “setting benchmarks for participants is common practice,” and saying that focusing on candidates who had polled at over 10 percent allowed for a “more substantive discussion of the issues.” Read more.
Aug. 10, 2017 – Jay Morgan applauded as Commissioner David Carrington voiced his disapproval of an effort to get zoning in The Cotswolds subdivision amended to permit the construction of a pair of houses on land that was designated to be left undeveloped. “He said they need to play by the rules,” said Morgan, who lives in the subdivision on Sicard Hollow Road near Liberty Park. “These developers … they were not playing by the rules. They started building the driveway and didn’t even have a building permit. That’s why we have rules and regulations.” Carrington ultimately moved that the matter be carried over for no more than six months to allow, among other things, for all parties to be duly notified. Read more.
Birmingham Board of Education, District 2 Brandon McCray Age: 36 Residence: South East Lake Political experience: Neighborhood officer, secretary. Professional experience: Birmingham City Council, administrative assistant, 2009 to present; All The Way Entertainment, casting director, 2012 to present. Civic experience: Birmingham Children’s Theatre, patron board member, 2010 to 2015; Birmingham Festival Theatre board member, 2012
Birmingham Board of Education, District 9 Sandra Kelly Brown Age: 70 Political experience: Member, Birmingham Board of Education, District 9, 2013-present. Professional experience: Employee, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama, 1973-1997; part-time employee, The Greater Birmingham Convention and Visitors Bureau, 2007-2017. Civic experience: Has been president, vice president and secretary of the North Birmingham Neighborhood
Birmingham Board of Education, District 9 Lawrence Jackson Political experience: Ran unsuccessfully for a seat on the city Board of Education in 2013. Professional experience: Currently a professor teaching social work at Alabama A&M and Lawson State Community College; pastor at Love Fellowship Baptist Church; owns Sweet and Eats restaurant. Education: Master’s, Alabama A&M; bachelor’s,
