Tag: Elections
Sylvia Swayne, Alabama House District 55 Runoff
Bryan Brinyark, Alabama House District 16 Runoff
Brad Cox, Alabama House District 16 Runoff
Brad Cox, Bryan Brinyark Competing in GOP Runoff for House District 16 Seat
The two Republicans facing off in the Oct. 24 GOP runoff for House District 16 are both conservative.
But Brad Cox and Bryan Brinyark would bring vastly different experiences to Goat Hill. Read more.
Supreme Court Ruling Means Special Session on New Map, Potential Race Shake-Ups in 2024
Birmingham Asks Public to Consider Proposed New Council and BOE District Lines
The Birmingham City Council is considering the approval of new City Council and Board of Education district lines, redrawn to take into account population shifts shown by the 2020 census.
City law mandates that districts be redrawn after each census to make sure that Birmingham’s population is evenly distributed among them. Each district elects a member of the City Council and the school board. The proposed changes would be in effect for the next two municipal elections, in 2025 and 2029.
The council held a public hearing March 29 to hear residents’ thoughts on the new district maps, and tweaks could be made based on those comments.
The proposal would shift territory out of relatively overpopulated districts — Districts 1 and 2, for example — and into underpopulated districts — Districts 4, 6, 8 and 9. Read more and see the full proposal.
Super PAC Supporting Katie Britt for U.S. Senate Launches
The first super PAC of the Alabama Senate race has arrived.
Alabama Conservatives Fund, which supports former Business Council of Alabama President Katie Britt’s candidacy, launched this week and is planning a series of advertising spots touting the Republican from Enterprise.
The group is planning six-figure ad buys each on broadcast, cable and digital television platforms, seeking to “penetrate likely Republican primary voters at a significant rate” in the Montgomery, Birmingham, Huntsville and Mobile media markets. Read more.
As other states drew fire for passing restrictive election laws, Alabama skirted outside the limelight. But changes were made here, too.
Fourteen states passed 22 election laws this year, some of which caused a stir as voting advocates complained that they restricted the rights of voters, while others argued the new laws were needed to add security to the vote.
Alabama has eight new election-related laws this year out of 27 voting-related bills introduced in the Legislature. While some stirred opposition in the state, it was nothing like the national outrage over changes in some other states.
That’s at least partly because Alabama already had adopted one of the most controversial bills passed in other states – a requirement that voters show ID at the polls was passed here in 2014 – and because Georgia attracted so much attention for its ban on delivering water to voters standing in line at the polls.
Alabama did pass a few other laws. One to ban curbside voting, which was not being offered in any of the counties, anyway. Others require a partial post-election audit in three counties, move up the deadline for applying to vote by absentee ballot, and specifically make it a crime to vote in Alabama and another state, for instance. Read more.
Senate Approves Ban on Double Voting, Delays Decision on Curbside Ban
The Alabama Senate on Thursday approved several measures related to elections and alleged voter fraud.
“There are few pillars of our democracy more important than the security of our elections,” Senate President Pro Tem Greg Reed, R-Jasper, said after the votes. “Free and fair elections, conducted in a secure manner, are a hallmark of our country, and serve as a defender of the freedoms that we enjoy as Americans.”
Among those measures are ones that would make it a felony to vote twice in any election, require legislation related to the conduct of general elections be passed at least six months before the election, and move up the deadline for applying to vote by absentee ballot. Read more.
More from the Legislature:
Charter School Funding Bill Fails in the House
Innovation Corporation Bills Pass the House
Legislative Oversight and State Parks Bills Advance, Other Bills Considered by Committees
Civil Asset Forfeiture Compromise Clears Senate
Legislative Briefs: Nursing Home, Hospital Visitation; Drive-Through Alcohol Sales
Legislature’s Differences on Election Legislation Reflect a National Divide
MONTGOMERY — In the wake of the 2020 elections, measures to change voting procedures and regulations have been introduced at the federal and state levels, revealing a deep partisan divide over how voting should work.
While Democrats in Congress are pushing legislation that would limit states’ ability to enact strict voting requirements, Republicans in state legislatures are considering bills to tighten voting regulations in the name of securing voter integrity.
Alabama has followed suit, as a number of election-centered bills have been introduced during the ongoing 2021 regular session. Around 32 bills from both Democrats and Republicans introduced this year have dealt with Alabama election law.
Some of the conservative measures have drawn sharp concern from Democrats saying the bills promote voter suppression and are in reaction to President Donald Trump’s false accusations of widespread voter fraud during the 2020 election.
Read more.
More from the Legislature:
Bills Would Limit Cities’ Gas Tax Spending
Senator Looking for Fix on Tax-Filing Interest Issue
