Government

Crowds Turn Out for Saturday Absentee Voting in Jefferson County

Hundreds of people lined up in Linn Park on Saturday to cast their absentee ballots in person. The Jefferson County Commission decided to open the courthouse for in-person absentee voting this Saturday and next because people have been waiting in line for up to three hours to vote during the week. The Alabama Poor People’s Campaign was among several groups manning tables in the park with absentee ballot applications for voters to fill out before they got in the official line to vote. Volunteers also could make a photo ID in case a voter did not have one, which is required before they cast their ballots. “At least one step will be done before getting inside the courthouse,” said the Rev. Carolyn Foster, one of the chairs of the state Poor People’s Campaign. Read more.

by Tom Gordon

Recent Contributors to Jones and Tuberville

Following are contributions of $5,000 and up to U.S. Senate candidates Doug Jones and Tommy Tuberville, as listed in reports filed Thursday with the Federal Elections Commission for the period of July 1 through Sept. 30. Read more.

by Glenn Stephens

Jefferson County Commission Opens Courthouses for Saturday Absentee Voting

The courthouses in Birmingham and Bessemer will be open for in-person absentee voting the next two Saturdays, Oct. 17 and Oct. 24. The move comes in response to long lines and wait times to cast absentee ballots in person in recent weeks. Jefferson County Probate Judge James Naftel said that, as of Wednesday, the county was processing more than 25,000 absentee ballots and ballot applications. That’s compared to about 10,500 absentee ballots cast in the 2016 general election. Read more.

by Miranda Fulmore, WBHM

The Census Counting Is Done, but the Result Is Unknown

The counting has stopped, but nobody is releasing any tallies yet for the 2020 U.S. census in Alabama, and those final tallies hold the keys to federal funding and congressional redistricting. Spokespersons and Census Bureau websites tell us that “99.9%” of the households in the state have either self-responded or answered questions from a door-knocking census mop-up worker. But just try to find out what that 99.9% is 99.9% of. If you go to the state response section of the Census 2020 site, it gets even more confusing. Read more.

by Nancy Wilstach

Jones Outpaces Tuberville 3-to-1 in Fundraising for Senate Campaign

Sen. Doug Jones, generally regarded as the most vulnerable member of the U.S. Senate in the November elections, is approaching Election Day with huge advantages over Republican challenger Tommy Tuberville in fundraising and spending. Reports filed Thursday with the Federal Elections Commission show the freshman Democrat raised about three times as much as Tuberville, a former Auburn University football coach, and spent almost five times as much during the three-month period that ended Sept. 30. Read more. Recent Contributors to Jones and Tuberville

by Glenn Stephens

Jefferson County Election Officials Consider Offering Absentee Voting on a Weekend

WBHM Jefferson County may allow absentee voting on a Saturday later this month, but county Probate Judge James Naftel said any such move would first need to be authorized by county or state officials. Read more.

by Miranda Fulmore, WBHM

Birmingham Library Executive Director Suspended Without Pay

Birmingham Public Library Executive Director Floyd Council has been suspended without pay for one month by the library system’s board of trustees, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the situation. The decision was made in a library board meeting Tuesday. As with all personnel decisions, the board held the discussion and took the vote to suspend Council during a private executive session. Details of the suspension, including the reasoning behind it, were not immediately made public. Deputy Director Janine Langston will take over as interim director. Read more.

by Sam Prickett

Federal Court Says ID, Witnesses Required for Absentee Voting

People who want to vote absentee now must provide a photo ID to apply for an absentee ballot and have the signatures of two witnesses or a notary to cast the ballot itself. A federal court ruled Tuesday that the state should enforce those requirements. However, the court did say curbside voting should be allowed in Alabama if counties want to offer it. Read more.

by BirminghamWatch

Hearing on Carraway Rezoning Proposals Set for Nov. 10

The Birmingham City Council has set a Nov. 10 public hearing to discuss the proposed rezoning of several properties around the former Carraway Methodist Medical Center campus. The hospital, located at 1600 Carraway Boulevard, closed due to bankruptcy in 2008 and has been abandoned ever since. In 2019, Corporate Realty announced plans to redevelop the property into a multi-use site including retail, dining, residential and entertainment spaces. The existing hospital structures will have to be demolished, developers told residents last year, though the existing parking decks will remain. Read more.

by Sam Prickett

Jefferson County Clerk’s Office Redesigns to Handle Throngs of Voters

The circuit clerk’s office at the Jefferson County Courthouse was closed Monday for Columbus Day, but staffers in the office weren’t taking a holiday. “The absentee staff is working on the mail today, getting out ballots, the ballots that have been returned,” said James P. Naftel II, the presiding probate judge of Jefferson County. “(Columbus Day is) a state holiday and the circuit clerk's office is closed for in-person voting today but it will reopen tomorrow.” It’s been a working weekend of those in the clerk’s office as they have set the stage for what they hope is a more efficient processing of in-person absentee voters. Read more.

by Solomon Crenshaw Jr.