Top 40 Most Influential Non-Elected Alabamians, Part 3
Insiders immersed in Alabama politics helped the Parlor create the list of the Top 40 Most Influential Non-Elected Alabamians in the realm of state politics and policy. Who are the folks who can pick up the ball on a policy proposal and move it down the field?
Numbers 31-40 are here, and 21-30 are here. The first three tiers or groups of ten are presented unranked within those groups; a little more about that can be found here in the introduction.
We are up to numbers 11 to 20.
#11 - #20 of the
Top 40 Most Influential Non-Elected Alabamians
(Alphabetical Order)
- Tom Hamby - The head of BellSouth Alabama has a powerful personality and works very aggressively in the policy arena.
- Johnny Johns - The head honcho of Protective Life Alabama is part of the business triumvirate (with McCrary and Hamby) that has the loudest private sector voice in Alabama’s business policy.
- Mac McArthur - The Alabama State Employees’ Association is the second most powerful union in the state, and their Executive Director, who was once thought to have his own statewide ambitions, is an incredibly influential personality with friends on both sides of the aisle
- Milton McGregor - Gambling magnate makes money hand over fist in a capacity that most people think is illegal to do in the state. Uses it to influence politics, and as one contributor said, “Lord knows he’s aggressive.”
- Bill O’Connor - Former BCA President is now the right hand of Speaker of the House Seth Hammett.
- Joe Perkins - The Matrix founder is a legendary figure with a fearsome reputation among Alabama politicos; works in the shadows. Probably at his zenith of influence in the Siegelman years, still very close to the House Speaker and is a consultant to many CEOs.
- Steve Raby - Former Heflin Chief of Staff and Democratic consultant is “Lowell Barron’s guy” and has the ear of Paul Hubbert. Runs the Senate races for the majority and is the GOTV guru for Alabama Dems.
- Joe Reed - The #2 man at AEA and leader of the Alabama Democratic Conference is not as powerful as he once was, but still extremely influential in his spheres.
- Julian Smith - One of the most powerful and least known lobbyists in Alabama. He has been with political heavyweight Alabama Power for decades.
- Steve Windom - In addition to having served as Lt. Governor and State Senator (which comes with residual influence), he has raised large sums of money for candidates across the state. Very close to Governor Riley but on good terms with Democratic legislators as well.
Top Ten tomorrow.
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Joyce Bigbee, the director of the Legislative Fiscal Office, really should be somwhere on this top 40 list. She is low key but very effective and influential and has held her powerful, important position for many years. That’s not an easy thing to do, and she is respected by all.
Comment by Anna — March 12, 2008 @ 1:20 pm
You are right about labor boss Mac MacArthur of the liberal state employees union having friends - or at least one very very good friend - on the other side of the ailse. MacArthur has always been the biggest political supporter of state Rep. (and Congressional Candidate) Jay Love. In fact, Love’s candidacy that knocked off true hard-right conservative Bob McKee was almost totally MacArthur’s creation, and the state employees union continues to be Love’s biggest financial contributor. Love is the only GOP state legislator in years to grace the cover of the state employees’ union magazine (they have had Riley on there as well as Bill Pryor, but Love is the only state Rep who’s gotten star treatment from the state employees union).
Comment by Anonymous — March 12, 2008 @ 1:52 pm
Gosh. I wonder who could have written post #2 above? Let me take a stab. Could anonymous be a Harri Anne Smith supporter or maybe even the Senator herself? Please. If you’re going to take a jab at a campaign opponent, have someone that can use their name to add a bit of credibility to your argument.
Comment by Trvld — March 15, 2008 @ 2:38 am
#3 - I notice you didn’t challenge the factual accuracy of #2.
Comment by Anonymous — March 15, 2008 @ 8:58 am
[…] Many are telling the Parlor that state power broker Steve Windom had a proactive role in the turnover. Some close to the campaign are saying that the former GOP Lt. Governor-turned-lobbyist called members of Smith’s campaign finance committee to tell them that she would never win the race without these kinds of changes, and that this is what instigated the turnover. […]
Pingback by Behind the Scenes: The Smith Campaign Personnel Change » Doc’s Political Parlor — June 13, 2008 @ 2:52 pm