2009 Birmingham mayoral election: Difference between revisions

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==External links==
==External links==
* [http://media.al.com/bn/other/Birmingham%20mayor%20voting.pdf Mayoral vote, by precinct] at al.com
* [http://www.lwvgb.org/ League of Women Voters of Greater Birmingham] website
* [http://www.lwvgb.org/ League of Women Voters of Greater Birmingham] website
* [http://wadeonbirmingham.com/2009/12/07/vote-2009-last-minute-thoughts-hurry-up-mayoral-election/ voting guide] at Wade on Birmingham
* [http://wadeonbirmingham.com/2009/12/07/vote-2009-last-minute-thoughts-hurry-up-mayoral-election/ voting guide] at Wade on Birmingham

Revision as of 11:48, 10 December 2009

The 2009 mayoral election for the city of Birmingham is a special election held on December 8, 2009 to fill the office of Mayor of Birmingham left vacant by the conviction of Larry Langford after his trial on federal corruption charges. The verdict was returned on October 28 and candidates had until November 17 to qualify. Fourteen filed with the probate office and appeared on the ballot.

The general election took place on a cool, rainy day. Patrick Cooper, an attorney who had finished a distant second to Langford in the 2007 Birmingham mayoral election, spent heavily on television ads and finished with a strong lead. Former interim-mayor and current Jefferson County Commissioner William Bell finished second and joined Cooper in a runoff. Former Birmingham City Council president and attorney Emory Anthony had significant support, but finished outside the runoff. Acting Council president Steven Hoyt led the also-rans with just under 2% of the vote. Candidate Ernie Dunn, who died a few days prior to the election, garnered 13 votes, finishing in last place.

Results

  1. Patrick Cooper 13,992 votes (40.06%, runoff)
  2. William Bell 8,752 votes (25.06%, runoff)
  3. Carole Smitherman, 6,552 votes (18.76%)
  4. Emory Anthony, 4,344 votes (12.44%)
  5. Steven Hoyt, 641 votes (1.84%)
  6. Scott Douglas, 201 votes (0.58%)
  7. Jody Trautwein, 173 votes (0.50%)
  8. Harry "Traveling Shoes" Turner, 81 votes (0.23%)
  9. Stephannie Huey, 60 votes (0.17%)
  10. T. C. Cannon, 40 votes (0.11%)
  11. Jason Sumners, 31 votes (0.09%)
  12. Edith Mayomi, 28 votes (0.08%)
  13. Jimmy Snow, 23 votes (0.07%)
  14. Ernie Dunn, 13 votes (0.04%)

The 34,931 votes cast represent approximately 26% of the registered voters in Birmingham.

signs

Campaign events

Four forums and a public debate were held during the short campaign season:

Endorsements

The Birmingham News endorsed Emory Anthony, concluding that he was the only candidate with the potential to be a "great" mayor for Birmingham.

Former mayor Larry Langford endorsed William Bell because he consistently supported his initiatives.

Campaign finances

In reports filed on Thursday, December 3, Cooper led all candidates in contributions with $246,550, including $30,000 from Ted C. Kennedy, and $40,000 from Jay Grinney and his wife Melanie, and a $19,500 contribution from New Leader PAC chaired by Jeremy Erdreich. Cooper began the campaign with $112,000 in unretired debt from the 2007 race. After spending $273,695 so far this year, his campaign remains nearly $110,000 in the red. Smitherman has raised $68,460, of which she has spend $46,460. Her largest contributions were from John McMahon, Jr and Phillip McWane, and from the FGA PAC chaired by Joe Fine. Bell gas spent $30,907 of the $37,900 he raised, including $5,000 contributions from Carl Rouss, Mark French and Bobby Humphrey. Anthony reported raising $15,915 and spending $12,688. His biggest contributors were Volkert & Associates and Bender & Agboola. Hoyt raised $24,285 and spent $21,489. His biggest contributor was former councilman Samuel Herring and the STA PAC, chaired by lobbyist Rudolph Davidson. Douglas raised $12,240, spending $4,066. Trautwein raised $2,760. Huey, Turner and Sumners reported no contributions. Cannon, Dunn, Mayomi and Snow did not file reports.

Additional information

Richard Arrington, Jr, a former 5-term Mayor of Birmingham, Mary Moore, member of the Alabama House of Representatives and Cedric Sparks, director of the Mayor's Division of Youth Services, were mentioned as possible candidates, but did not run.

Due to the short campaign season, no media polls were undertaken prior to the election.

Rapper Boss Tweed added his own signs across the city, promoting his "Boss Tweed 4 Mayor" extended-play release.

References

  • Dean, Chuck (November 1, 2009) "Birmingham mayoral hopefuls may flood new race." Birmingham News
  • Bryant, Joseph D. (November 2, 2009) "Birmingham mayoral election set for Dec. 8." Birmingham News
  • Bryant, Joseph D. (November 8, 2009) "Emory Anthony to announce run for mayor Monday." Birmingham News
  • Archibald, John (November 11, 2009) "Imagine that -- clowns, visionaries try to fill Langford's shoes." Birmingham News
  • Natta, André (November 12, 2009) "Election '09: Let the mayoral forums begin" The Terminal
  • Archibald, John (November 18, 2009) "Archibald: Ranking the mayoral hopefuls." Birmingham News
  • Dean, Chuck (November 29, 2009) "Apathy, hope voiced before Birmingham mayoral vote." Birmingham News
  • Bryant, Joseph D. (December 1, 2009) "Larry Langford endorses William Bell for mayor." Birmingham News
  • Bryant, Joseph D. (December 3, 2009) "Cooper leads in fundraising, debt in mayor's race." Birmingham News
  • "OUR VIEW: At least one candidate in a crowded field has the potential to be a fine leader for Birmingham." (December 6, 2009) Birmingham News
  • Hubbard, Russell (December 8, 2009) "Patrick Cooper, William Bell in runoff for Birmingham mayor." Birmingham News

External links

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