Byrne and Young advance to runoff election in Alabama special election
September 24, 2013
Montgomery, Alabama: The crowded Republican special election primary ended with two candidates advancing to a runoff election necessary to secure the party's nomination. Nine Republicans and two Democrats faced off for their party's nomination in the special election primary elections to replace Jo Bonner (R) in the 1st District.
Bonner resigned in May to accept a position as vice chancellor of government and economic development at the University of Alabama.[1] He then announced on July 23, 2013, that he would resign August 2, 2013, instead of August 15, 2013 as originally planned. This allowed Gov. Robert Bentley to schedule the special election so that a replacement could be elected and seated before the new session of Congress begins in January 2014.[2]
Democratic candidate Burton LeFlore easily defeated challenger Lula Albert-Kaigler to advance to the general election.[3]
Former state senator Bradley Byrne had a lead in both fundraising and in a poll of Republican candidates heading into the primary.[4][5] He was not able, however, to secure the necessary majority of votes to win the nomination.[3]
None of the candidates received more than 50 percent of the vote in the primary elections, prompting a special primary runoff election that will be held on November 5, 2013.[6] Byrne and Dean Young will go head to head in the runoff election, with the winner advancing to the general election scheduled for December 17.[7]
Turnout in the election was relatively low, with only about 15 to 18 percent of voters turning up to the polls.[8]
The 1st District is considered a safe Republican seat and has been represented by a Republican since 1964.[9][10] Despite the shortened term, the winner of the special election will face re-election in 2014.[11]
| U.S. House, Alabama District 1 Republican Primary, 2013 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
 Bradley Byrne |
34.6% | 18,090 | ||
| Dean Young |
23% | 12,011 | ||
| Chad Fincher | 15.6% | 8,177 | ||
| Qyin Hillyer | 13.9% | 7,260 | ||
| Wells Griffith | 11% | 5,758 | ||
| Daniel Dyas | 0.7% | 391 | ||
| Jessica James | 0.7% | 391 | ||
| Sharon Powe | 0.4% | 184 | ||
| David Thornton | 0.1% | 72 | ||
| Total Votes | 52,334 | |||
| Source: Unofficial results via Associated Press[12] | ||||
| U.S. House, Alabama District 1 Special Democratic Primary, 2013 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
|
Burton LeFlore |
70.2% | 3,129 | ||
| Lula Albert-Kaigler | 29.8% | 1,328 | ||
| Total Votes | 4,457 | |||
| Source: Unofficial results via Associated Press[13] | ||||
See also
|
- Alabama's 1st Congressional District special election, 2013
- Alabama elections, 2013
- United States House of Representatives
- Special elections to the 113th United States Congress (2013-2014)
- State Poll Opening and Closing Times (2013)
External links
- Alabama Secretary of State 2013 election information
- AL.com List of candidates
- Unofficial results via Associated Press
Footnotes
- ↑ blog.al.com, "BREAKING: Rep. Jo Bonner resigning from Congress," May 23, 2013
- ↑ Tuscaloosa News, "Jo Bonner to resign two weeks earlier than planned" accessed July 25, 2013
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 AP Results, "Alabama Special Election Primary," accessed September 24, 2013
- ↑ Cyngal, "AL-01 Flash Poll – 09/19/13," accessed September 19, 2013
- ↑ WKRG, "Crowded Race Tuesday for Ala. Congressional Race," accessed September 22, 2013
- ↑ Federal Voting Assistance Program, "ALABAMA TO HOLD SPECIAL PRIMARY ELECTION FOR CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT ONE," accessed September 22, 2013
- ↑ Governor of Alabama, "Governor Bentley Announces Court-Approved Timeline for Special Election in 1st Congressional District" accessed July 30, 2013
- ↑ Alabama Public Radio, "Turnout Light In Ala.'s 1st Congressional District," accessed September 24, 2013
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedmissed - ↑ Roll Call, "Top Republican to Enter Alabama Special Election #AL01" accessed June 10, 2013
- ↑ AL.com, "9 Republicans, 2 Democrats qualify for AL-01 congressional race" accessed August 6, 2013
- ↑ Associated Press, "Alabama - Summary Vote Results ," accessed September 24, 2013
- ↑ Associated Press, "Alabama - Summary Vote Results ," accessed September 24, 2013
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