In House District 91, is Terry Spicer going to make a decision specific to the “double dipping” ban? So, I understand, the Alabama Supreme Court recently ruled that the State Board of Education and the Dept. of Post Secondary Education, did in fact have the authority to prevent those in the state legislature from also having jobs in the 2 year college system. Terry Spicer has been “double dipping” for years drawing one heck of a salary at Enterprise Ozark Community College as an “Asst. to the President” and also drawing a salary as a state rep. With the recent decision, that will no longer be allowed but when the “deadline” is, I am not certain. I believe Spicer will have to make a decision as to which job he wants to keep by the 2010 election. It will be interesting to see.
Also, Locy baker in District 85 almost lost in the last election. As parts of Henry County are becoming more Republican, you can bet Locy will have an opponent….likely one that can beat him.
The GOP has a good opportunity to pick up at least seven seats, where Democrats are either retiring or vulnerable. They will likely win Sue Schmitz’s seat in north Alabama’s District 6.
Reps. Lea Fite, Locy “Sonny” Baker and Terry Spicer all won by razor thin margins in 2006, therefore, they should be considered vulnerable in 2010. Spicer especially, who barely hung on to his seat by only 300 votes.
And last, but not least, Seth Hammett’s Covington County seat will likely go Republican. When Hammett was first elected, most Alabama politicians were Democrats, and he benefited from the trend of Democrats getting elected to the state legislature. However, the demographics of that district have increasingly begun to lean for the GOP in recent years, and his seat will be highly contested for the GOP.
Thunder, if Oden runs for Treasurer or Probate Judge. The dems will go after that seat with force. I dont think the GOP has to worry about the rest of their house seats north of Birmingham.
Thunder, I think you might be surprised in Covington County. There is still a substantial population in Covington and Coffee that are old-line Dems. With the right candidate, the Dems hold the seat.
Heard that, Crazy. He was thinking that it might be an easier race than AG. I’ve always said AG will be tough for any Dem if King wins the primary, and any Dem has to gamble on King losing to Luther to have a serious shot. The way things look now, that might be changing. Traditional Dem constiuencies are seeing that they may have gotten as much mileage out of King as they are going to get. A strong Dem candidate looks much more likely at AG, now, and Anderson could well be that candidate. At least that is the talk I’ve heard, and that is the talk Anderson has heard. As it stands now, the risk/reward analysis seems to favor Anderson at AG, and from what I understand, Anderson will go AG or not at all.
I, for one, think that is smart for Anderson and the Dems. They don’t need to blow their powder on a House race, when they can pick up AG. Anderson is an experienced candidate with a state-wide race under his belt. It would be a large step down for him to run for Grimes’ seat, even if he could win HD73.
Mike Burdine is planning a run against Spencer Collier although he has NOOO chance. James Gordon will have oppostion from a member of the Prichard city council. Gordon has not “tweaked the powers-that-be” in elected positions.He is also losing a TON of $$$’s wasting his time in the Montgomery bar/ladies scene !!!
Will somebody please at least run against Alvin Holmes? At least TRY to get that race-baiting idiot out. He’s an embarrassment to Montgomery and to this state. Doesn’t he get it that he’s lost all credibility and no one listens to him anymore?
H. D. Edgar ?????????????? As a GOP????????????? Who added that? He is a huge DEM. He was the poster boy for Bright in Covington County and has been known as a dem for quite sometime, along with the opp city atty.
I added Edgar to the GOP side based on my reading of this Andalusia Star-News article. They appeared to have his name lumped in with Republicans at the beginning of the article while Democrats appeared to be mentioned at the end of the article.
Did I misread? Party preferences were not entirely clear to me in that article. Are there others listed here with the wrong party?
BTW, a reader suggested that an incumbent who is not running again might be marked in some special way so it doesn’t create a little confusion when looking at the lists. Yes, open seats are marked, but I can see where it would be helpful to have the incumbent’s name marked differently where the seat will be open.
I have now struck through the names of incumbents that are not running again. I hope that is helpful.
In House 92, H.D. Edgar currently has no party affiliation. I wouldn’t be very quick to call someone a big Democrat because they supported Bobby Bright; there are a lot of people that supported Bright from both sides of the political fence. H.D. Edgar, or Durwood, as he more commonly goes by, has no party allegiance; although, he owns a trucking company and has views that tend to be more conservative. Either way, it is doubtful that he will be a candidate in this House 92 race. He has no intentions of leaving Opp. He likes his position as mayor, likes to keep tight reigns on his company, and likes to be with his family. It is highly unlikely that he would run.
Edgar not only supported bright but hosted fundraisers, etc for him. There is no way he would get the support of the covington county GOP if he chose to run in the GOP primary for this race. But I agree that it is likely he will not run at all….not is the Opp city atty is also interested.
Many of the potential candidates for the House 92 race are going to sit back and wait to see what some of the bigger names do. I would say that there are 1 or 2 people on the potential candidate list that would likely scare the rest of the potentials away from the race if they announce.
An announcement by Laird or Merrell either one could be big. Both have well-known names in the district. Although the name of Mike Jones has been thrown around a lot on the Republican side and he is a fairly widely known name, there are quite a few skeletons in his closet that would easily come out and hurt him in an election. Although some of the other names listed are considering, there are several listed under House 92 that really are not even remotely considering running for this seat. There are really only about 5 names to watch in this race.
I have updated all three lists (House, Senate, and Big List). I think that HD75 is the only update I made to this list tonight (based on the previous comment).
In House 92, H.D. Edgar should be listed as a potential Democratic candidate rather than a potential GOP candidate. He has indicated that if he does run, it will be as a Democrat. Also worth mentioning in the House 92 race, Laird and Edgar will not run against each other, so that will be something to pay attention to.
Thanks, bama2010… yours is the second comment to that effect. I’ll make the change.
JD, I think you may assume that all incumbents are running again until they indicate otherwise (in which case their names are struck through and the seat is listed as open).
The link to Paul Beckman’s website makes his name purple. Links usually change the color of text on a website.
The effort here is to produce a lot of information in a way that is helpful and not confusing. I’m not sure we are there yet (helpful not confusing) in linking to the websites.
You can see it done differently on Phil Williams’ name on House District 6. It’s more aesthetically pleasing to me, but there is no indication that there is a link to his website until you mouseover his name.
One possibility would be to have an underline indicate a link, but I think that may really clutter the page especially since there are other underlines on the page that don’t indicate links.
Ultimately, the way to go may be to include a small icon of some kind with a link to a website next to every name where it’s appropriate. Quickly shows that there is a website available, and doesn’t clutter up the text.
I gotcha, Danny. Thanks for the clarifiacation. I thought perhaps he was running as an LSU fan. Maybe an icon on the side would be easier, but I am glad you are including the website.
A couple of the new names listed under house 92 are a bad joke, the origin of which was the Opp radio station WOPP, which has a rumor to fact ratio of about 10-1. I realize that district 92 doesn’t have the most educated voter pool in the state, but I do believe that the people of our district have more integrity than to believe a couple of these names could actually run for our seat, must less serve as our State Representative.
I am hearing Paul Beckman is having second thoughts about running. Heard he is seeing the writing on the wall that his supporters are simply using him as a puppet.
Well I am getting word that Gary Johnson a new resident to Birmingham and Jefferson County may challenge Rep. Patricia Todd as a democrat on next year in 2010. The word is he is building a campaign and is expected to launch it in November or Decemember.
This Thursday will mark the last day of the legislative Session. For some, it was a Session that seemed would never end. For others, it was one that ended much too quickly. It may be early, yet, to write an obit on this Session, but as we approach the finish line, some perspective may be in order.
As you know, a very important piece of legislation will be presented for our consideration in the House tomorrow in Montgomery – Senate Bill 310 – the “Students First” tenure and fair dismissal reform bill. Like me, many House members have been inundated with phone calls and emails from opponents of this bill, and some have been [...]
There are a lot of issues to debate before we begin the final days of this session. In fact, I am quite certain there will be some comments on this post debating many of them. Before we get into the last seven day of the session I wanted to bring up a topic that [...]
What is the current count of Safe/Lean Dem and Safe Lean GOP?
How many districts does the GOP need to take control?
Are their enough swing seats out there?
In House District 91, is Terry Spicer going to make a decision specific to the “double dipping” ban? So, I understand, the Alabama Supreme Court recently ruled that the State Board of Education and the Dept. of Post Secondary Education, did in fact have the authority to prevent those in the state legislature from also having jobs in the 2 year college system. Terry Spicer has been “double dipping” for years drawing one heck of a salary at Enterprise Ozark Community College as an “Asst. to the President” and also drawing a salary as a state rep. With the recent decision, that will no longer be allowed but when the “deadline” is, I am not certain. I believe Spicer will have to make a decision as to which job he wants to keep by the 2010 election. It will be interesting to see.
Also, Locy baker in District 85 almost lost in the last election. As parts of Henry County are becoming more Republican, you can bet Locy will have an opponent….likely one that can beat him.
I wonder if Spicer would still be “Asst. to the President” if he was not in the Legislature?
The GOP has a good opportunity to pick up at least seven seats, where Democrats are either retiring or vulnerable. They will likely win Sue Schmitz’s seat in north Alabama’s District 6.
Reps. Lea Fite, Locy “Sonny” Baker and Terry Spicer all won by razor thin margins in 2006, therefore, they should be considered vulnerable in 2010. Spicer especially, who barely hung on to his seat by only 300 votes.
And last, but not least, Seth Hammett’s Covington County seat will likely go Republican. When Hammett was first elected, most Alabama politicians were Democrats, and he benefited from the trend of Democrats getting elected to the state legislature. However, the demographics of that district have increasingly begun to lean for the GOP in recent years, and his seat will be highly contested for the GOP.
Thunder, if Oden runs for Treasurer or Probate Judge. The dems will go after that seat with force. I dont think the GOP has to worry about the rest of their house seats north of Birmingham.
Thanks to those who have offered input already. Since this went up this morning I added names in districts 26, 49, 69, 73, 88, 92, 101, and 104.
Thunder, I think you might be surprised in Covington County. There is still a substantial population in Covington and Coffee that are old-line Dems. With the right candidate, the Dems hold the seat.
RE: Will Sellers in HD 73
I believe he lives in District 77 and is represented by John Knight.
Look for Jody Singleton from Headland, a local CPA and member of the Headland City Council, to possibly run against Locy Baker in District 85.
OC, from what I can tell you are correct and I have removed his name. Thank you very much!
Is Jody Singleton a Republican?
Oh sorry – yes – he will run with the GOP
Anybody heard James Anderson, the potential AG candidate, my run in HD 73 as a Dem?
Heard that, Crazy. He was thinking that it might be an easier race than AG. I’ve always said AG will be tough for any Dem if King wins the primary, and any Dem has to gamble on King losing to Luther to have a serious shot. The way things look now, that might be changing. Traditional Dem constiuencies are seeing that they may have gotten as much mileage out of King as they are going to get. A strong Dem candidate looks much more likely at AG, now, and Anderson could well be that candidate. At least that is the talk I’ve heard, and that is the talk Anderson has heard. As it stands now, the risk/reward analysis seems to favor Anderson at AG, and from what I understand, Anderson will go AG or not at all.
I, for one, think that is smart for Anderson and the Dems. They don’t need to blow their powder on a House race, when they can pick up AG. Anderson is an experienced candidate with a state-wide race under his belt. It would be a large step down for him to run for Grimes’ seat, even if he could win HD73.
Mike Burdine is planning a run against Spencer Collier although he has NOOO chance. James Gordon will have oppostion from a member of the Prichard city council. Gordon has not “tweaked the powers-that-be” in elected positions.He is also losing a TON of $$$’s wasting his time in the Montgomery bar/ladies scene !!!
I updated districts 1, 2, 7, 11, 37, 38, 40, 60, 63, 73, 81, and 85.
Maybe a couple of others last night too.
anyone know who charlie plott is? (hd 85)
I hear Shana Kluck will run for Gerald Allen’s seat if he goes against Phil Poole.
Will somebody please at least run against Alvin Holmes? At least TRY to get that race-baiting idiot out. He’s an embarrassment to Montgomery and to this state. Doesn’t he get it that he’s lost all credibility and no one listens to him anymore?
Over the weekend I updated districts 1 and 92. Plus, in HD 49, April Weaver has officially announced her candidacy so I moved her name to bold.
H. D. Edgar ?????????????? As a GOP????????????? Who added that? He is a huge DEM. He was the poster boy for Bright in Covington County and has been known as a dem for quite sometime, along with the opp city atty.
(in HD 92 that is……)
I added Edgar to the GOP side based on my reading of this Andalusia Star-News article. They appeared to have his name lumped in with Republicans at the beginning of the article while Democrats appeared to be mentioned at the end of the article.
Did I misread? Party preferences were not entirely clear to me in that article. Are there others listed here with the wrong party?
BTW, a reader suggested that an incumbent who is not running again might be marked in some special way so it doesn’t create a little confusion when looking at the lists. Yes, open seats are marked, but I can see where it would be helpful to have the incumbent’s name marked differently where the seat will be open.
I have now struck through the names of incumbents that are not running again. I hope that is helpful.
In House 92, H.D. Edgar currently has no party affiliation. I wouldn’t be very quick to call someone a big Democrat because they supported Bobby Bright; there are a lot of people that supported Bright from both sides of the political fence. H.D. Edgar, or Durwood, as he more commonly goes by, has no party allegiance; although, he owns a trucking company and has views that tend to be more conservative. Either way, it is doubtful that he will be a candidate in this House 92 race. He has no intentions of leaving Opp. He likes his position as mayor, likes to keep tight reigns on his company, and likes to be with his family. It is highly unlikely that he would run.
Edgar not only supported bright but hosted fundraisers, etc for him. There is no way he would get the support of the covington county GOP if he chose to run in the GOP primary for this race. But I agree that it is likely he will not run at all….not is the Opp city atty is also interested.
Many of the potential candidates for the House 92 race are going to sit back and wait to see what some of the bigger names do. I would say that there are 1 or 2 people on the potential candidate list that would likely scare the rest of the potentials away from the race if they announce.
Name names 2010 – who are the big names that could clear the field in HD 92?
An announcement by Laird or Merrell either one could be big. Both have well-known names in the district. Although the name of Mike Jones has been thrown around a lot on the Republican side and he is a fairly widely known name, there are quite a few skeletons in his closet that would easily come out and hurt him in an election. Although some of the other names listed are considering, there are several listed under House 92 that really are not even remotely considering running for this seat. There are really only about 5 names to watch in this race.
just fyi that bama2010 and 2010 are not the same person!
Since I last noted the changes, I have made changes in districts 1, 9, 30, and 73.
I heard this morning on the radio that Elmore County Commissioner Joe Faulk is running against Greg Wren.
I have updated all three lists (House, Senate, and Big List). I think that HD75 is the only update I made to this list tonight (based on the previous comment).
Priscilla Dunn’s seat is vacant – HD 56
Couple of names being mentioned as running for this seat
Jesse Matthews – Bessemer City Councilor
Louise Alexander – indicted Bessemer City Councilor
Thank you, ProgressiveE. Noted.
Glen McCord, the mayor of Yellow Bluff, has announced for HD69.
Is there any way to indicate that an incumbent has announced for reelection?
In House 92, H.D. Edgar should be listed as a potential Democratic candidate rather than a potential GOP candidate. He has indicated that if he does run, it will be as a Democrat. Also worth mentioning in the House 92 race, Laird and Edgar will not run against each other, so that will be something to pay attention to.
Thanks, bama2010… yours is the second comment to that effect. I’ll make the change.
JD, I think you may assume that all incumbents are running again until they indicate otherwise (in which case their names are struck through and the seat is listed as open).
http://dothanfirst.com/content/fulltext/?cid=71521
looks like district 86 will be an open seat as locy wants to run for senate. he will not beat penn and now his house seat will very likely go GOP.
sorry, that should read: district 85 as open
Who is Paul Beckman in 88, and why is he purple?
Baudrillard,
The link to Paul Beckman’s website makes his name purple. Links usually change the color of text on a website.
The effort here is to produce a lot of information in a way that is helpful and not confusing. I’m not sure we are there yet (helpful not confusing) in linking to the websites.
You can see it done differently on Phil Williams’ name on House District 6. It’s more aesthetically pleasing to me, but there is no indication that there is a link to his website until you mouseover his name.
One possibility would be to have an underline indicate a link, but I think that may really clutter the page especially since there are other underlines on the page that don’t indicate links.
Ultimately, the way to go may be to include a small icon of some kind with a link to a website next to every name where it’s appropriate. Quickly shows that there is a website available, and doesn’t clutter up the text.
Though I am open to suggestions.
Notice, if you will, how many of these legislators ran unopposed in 2006. More than half. If you want a concise list, you can check here.
http://www.politicsalabama.org/StateFactsLegislature.html
I gotcha, Danny. Thanks for the clarifiacation. I thought perhaps he was running as an LSU fan. Maybe an icon on the side would be easier, but I am glad you are including the website.
A couple of the new names listed under house 92 are a bad joke, the origin of which was the Opp radio station WOPP, which has a rumor to fact ratio of about 10-1. I realize that district 92 doesn’t have the most educated voter pool in the state, but I do believe that the people of our district have more integrity than to believe a couple of these names could actually run for our seat, must less serve as our State Representative.
Correction, “much” less serve as our State Representative.
Seat 105, Principal Paula Loper has contacted repub officlas to state her intention to run against Spencer Collier.Noooooo chance & waste of her time.
I am hearing Paul Beckman is having second thoughts about running. Heard he is seeing the writing on the wall that his supporters are simply using him as a puppet.
Well I am getting word that Gary Johnson a new resident to Birmingham and Jefferson County may challenge Rep. Patricia Todd as a democrat on next year in 2010. The word is he is building a campaign and is expected to launch it in November or Decemember.