By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
Friday, State Representative Mack Butler, R-Rainbow City, announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination to District 10 of the Alabama State Senate.
Rep. Butler said in a statement, “Our community has been blessed for the past seven years to have conservative leadership in the Alabama Senate, because I’ve been encouraged by so many people and there’s so much work to do in Montgomery, I have decided to enter this race to give the people of Etowah, Cherokee and DeKalb counties the small government, pro-liberty representation in Montgomery that they want.”
Rep. Butler is a small businessman who owns an electrical contracting business in Etowah County. He is currently serving as the 4th Congressional District chairman of Judge Roy Moore’s U.S. Senate campaign.
Butler actively campaigned for President Donald Trump in 2016, and he was an elected delegate for Trump to the Republican National Convention in 2016. Prior to serving in the Alabama House of Representatives, Rep. Butler served on the Etowah County Board of Education and is a former chairman to the Etowah County Republican Party.
Butler is widely recognized as one of the House of Representatives’ most conservative members. He sponsored the Memorial Preservation Act, which became law this past session and protects our historical structures from removal. He also sponsored the recently enacted assisted suicide ban, and he carried pro-Second Amendment Legislation to reaffirm citizens’ right to bear arms.
Butler said, “I believe in the Constitution and I believe in the rights that we’ve been given by our Creator. I will continue to fight every day for the people to preserve those rights. We all want to hand over a better State and a better nation to our children than the one our parents’ handed over to us. For too long, government has been the problem. We need to return liberty to the people.”
Mack Butler has been a reserve deputy with the Etowah County Sheriff’s Department since 2006 and is APOSTC certified. Rep. Butler said, “One of the main duties of government is to keep our streets safe. I am committed to working hand in hand with those who put themselves in harm’s way to protect us.”
Rep. Butler is a former school board member. He said, “We need to do what we can to make the most impact in our classrooms.” He added, “I’m interested in hearing from those on the front lines – in the classroom. There are amazing things happening in classrooms all over this district. But I can say this. We spend too much time and money on buildings and people far away from the classroom. We need to get back to what works best: equipping our teachers, not bureaucrats.”
Mack Butler believes that unnecessary government regulation and high taxes hurt Alabama’s economy and small businesses. He says that during his time in the Alabama House, he has consistently been on the front lines for lower taxes and less regulation on our small businesses and will continue to do so as state senator.
Incumbent state Senator Phil Williams, R-Rainbow City, has announced that he will not seek a third term in office.
Rep. Butler said, “Phil Williams is my friend, my ally, and a conservative beacon in this State. I am honored that he was one of the first to encourage me to take this next step.”
Sen. Phil Williams has endorsed Rep. Butler for the job. “Mack Butler is a man of high character and a leader who puts people first. He will be a listener and one who gets things done in Montgomery.”
Mack Butler is married to the former Connie Panell, also a native of Gadsden. They have four children and attend Whorton Bend Baptist Church.
Senate District 10 had been a Democratic stronghold until Phil Williams defeated then incumbent Larry Means, D-Attalla, in 2010. Means attempted a comeback in 2014, but he was defeated by Williams again. With Dr. Larry Stutts’, R-Sheffield, defeat of Sen. Roger Bedford, D-Russellville, in 2014, the Alabama Democratic Party holds no Senate seats in Alabama north of Jefferson County.
State Rep. Craig Ford, D-Gadsden, is reportedly considering also running for the office.
Senate District 10 consists of Etowah County and portions of Cherokee and DeKalb Counties.
The Major Party Primaries are on June 5, 2018.
