By Joey Kennedy
Alabama Political Reporter
Here in Birmingham, the excitement continues after Randall Woodfin solidly defeated incumbent Mayor William Bell in the Oct. 3 runoff for mayor.
So beginning Nov. 28, the stateโs largest city will have that cityโs youngest mayor in a long, long time. Woodfin, 36, and a lawyer in the cityโs legal department, ran a magnificent campaign. Bellโs campaign was typical Bell โ depending on his backers (many, Over-the-Mountain businesspeople) โ and it was not very enthusiastic.
Woodfin, however, knocked on doors, and had an army knocking on doors. He was everywhere, every day.
The result is that good timing and good campaigning put Woodfin in at City Hall.
Now, the young mayor has to deliver.
In the wake of the election, I talked with Woodfin, and heโs getting pretty much what he expected.
โIโm more slammed than I thought Iโd be, but itโs OK,โ Woodfin said. โItโs all good. I asked for it.โ
And then: โIโm very humbled by the responses of voters and residents.โ Woodfin said Birmingham has a lot of naysayers and โsometimes not a lot of hope. What we wanted to say is we wonโt participate in that. Weโll stay above it.โ
Stay above it, Woodfinโs campaign did. It was not a nasty campaign, though some Bell supporters criticized Woodfin for his leadership on the Birmingham Board of Education. Thatโs fair. The city school system is a mess, going through superintendents almost as fast as our pugs go through their kibble. The school system has many failing schools.
But Birminghamโs school system was a mess long before Woodfin was elected four years ago, and itโll continue being a mess long after heโs gone. Thereโs only so much one man can do.
What the school board position gave Woodfin was actual experience in governing. Doesnโt matter how well or poorly that went, it was experience, and even bad experience can be good experience.
What Woodfin has promised โ and heโll be held strictly accountable for that promise โ is that the cityโs finances will be transparent. The mayorโs office, City Council offices, city departments โ all will publish their accounts online and be readily available to any resident, as they should be and often were not under Bell.
Woodfin made a fantastic start with the team that will lead his transition into office. Retired Alabama Power Co. executive Bobbie Knight will co-chair the transition with former Birmingham-Southern College President Charles Krulak. Knight had an outstanding career at Alabama Power; Krulak saved BSC during some of its darkest hours. The well-respected Ed Fields, Woodfinโs campaign manager (and the best bet to be Woodfinโs chief of staff), will be transition coordinator.
This is an amazing team.
โIโve been at the city for a long time and around a lot of campaigns,โ Woodfin told me. โTransitions are important. We all have to sit down and say whatโs in the best interest of the city. That requires communication.โ
Donโt expect like many elected mayors, for Woodfin to simply go in and clean house at City Hall, though some might like him to. He may be young, but heโs deliberate, and thatโs what Birmingham needs at this stage in its redevelopment into one of the nationโs top small cities.
โI think weโre in a wait-and-see approach,โ Woodfin said. โItโs extremely important we assess personnel. We have to be in a space where we donโt lock ourselves into anything and leave things open.โ
Woodfin said each departmentโs personnel and leadership will be assessed, and his team will make sure the right people are in place to provide the right services to city residents.
โLet me say this, too,โ Woodfin offered. โThe mayor (Bell) has good people working for him. Campaign dollars arenโt my money. Taxpayer dollars arenโt my money. I think this is a really important point. Iโm telling you this is my style.โ
Woodfin said heโs not worried about pushback from the City Council, either.
โI think theyโre excited and looking forward to working with me,โ Woodfin said. โIโm excited to be working with them. We represent the same people. The issues in their districts are my issues. The issues in the city are their issues.โ
So, Birmingham prepares for an important transition, one that can build on the momentum gained under William Bell.
Birmingham is better today than it was more than seven years ago when Bell first took office. But it can be better, still, and itโs up to Woodfin to take Birmingham there.
Joey Kennedy, a Pulitzer Prize winner and Birmingham resident, writes a column every week for Alabama Political Reporter. Email: jkennedy@alreporter.com.