County Commission | The Magazine April 2018 | Page 16

FROM THE COVER
up and go to Montgomery,” she said.
In both Lee and Montgomery
counties, Harris and Harris stand
to follow former commissioners
who served their districts for many
years. House District 83 is an open
seat after the unexpected death of
Rep. George Bandy earlier this year.
House District 77 is an open seat,
as well, with Rep. John Knight’s
campaign for the state senate.
Hardee is challenging an
incumbent, Rep. Jimmy Martin, in
the Republican primary.
There are also two commissioners
running for open seats in the
Alabama Senate.
• Montgomery Co. Commissioner
Ronda Walker – Senate District
25 (Crenshaw, Elmore and
Montgomery)
• Baldwin Co. Commissioner
Chris Elliott – Senate District 32
(Baldwin)
Open seats can make for a
crowded field, and that is certainly the
case in House District 99. Sam Jones,
who has served on the Mobile County
Commission and as mayor of Mobile,
is in an eight-way primary. Jones is
also a past president of ACCA.
As for the current County
Caucus, all 12 members are
seeking to continue their legislative
service, and half of them have
no major-party opposition: Sen.
Clyde Chambliss (Autauga) and
Reps. Berry Forte (Barbour), Steve
Hurst (Talladega), Reed Ingram
(Montgomery), Randall Shedd
(Cullman) and David Standridge
(Blount).
Although most of them are
not dealing with rivals within
their own party, the incumbent
caucus members with major party
challengers this year are:
• Rep. Corley Ellis – House District
41 (Shelby)
• Rep. Jim Carns – House District
16 | COUNTY COMMISSION
48 (Jefferson and Shelby)
• Rep. Dimitri Polizos – House
District 74 (Montgomery)
• Rep. Joe Faust – House District 94
(Baldwin)
• Rep. Randy Wood – House
District 36 (Calhoun, St. Clair and
Talladega)
In addition, Rep. John Knight,
a longtime legislator and former
Montgomery Co. Commissioner,
is seeking to step up to the
Alabama Senate.
Commissioners have likely
noticed a few of their colleagues’
interest in statewide office.
Republican primary voters will see
Colbert County Commissioner
David Black among the candidates
for state treasurer. Black, a two-term
commissioner, works at the University
of North Alabama as an economics
instructor and director of the Small
Business Development Center.
Incumbent Treasurer Young
Boozer could not seek re-election due
to term limits.
The 2018 elections also feature
something of a rarity – a candidate
attempting to go from the Statehouse
to the county commission. For the
last 14 years, Rep. Jack D. Williams
has served Hoover and Vestavia Hills
in the Legislature, but this year he is
in a two-man, all-GOP race for the
open District 5 seat on the Jefferson
County Commission.
Williams does have a significant
personal connection to county
government. Prior to being elected to
the Legislature, he served eight years
as Jefferson County Tax Collector. n
From the Courthouse
to Congress
Considering the caliber of leaders making decisions at
courthouses all over the state, it should come as no surprise that
two former county commissioners (who also have state legislative
experience) represent Alabama in the U.S. House of Representatives.
U.S. Rep.
Mike Rogers –
Alabama’s 3rd
Congressional
District
(all of Calhoun, Chambers, Clay,
Cleburne, Lee, Macon, Randolph,
Russell, St. Clair, Talladega
and Tallapoosa counties, as
well as parts of Cherokee and
Montgomery counties)
U.S. Rep.
Mo Brooks –
Alabama’s 5th
Congressional
District
(all of Lauderdale, Limestone,
Madison and Morgan counties,
along with most of Jackson
County)