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Steve Flowers is a political columnist, commentator, and historian. Flowers writes a weekly syndicated column, Inside the Statehouse, which is published in 66 newspapers across the state of Alabama. Flowers is also the author of Of Goats and Governors: Six Decades of Colorful Alabama Political Stories, which was published by New South Books in 2015. [1]
Flowers is a native of Troy, Alabama. Beginning at age 12, Flowers served as a page in the Alabama House of Representatives. After graduating from high school, Flowers attended the University of Alabama. As a university student, Flowers served in various leadership roles, including the Student Government Association, where he served in the Student Senate. In 1974, Flowers received a degree in political science and history from the University of Alabama. [2]
At age 30, Flowers was elected to the Alabama House of Representatives [3] by the people of Pike County. In his 1982 campaign, Flowers received more votes than any other candidate for public office in the history of Pike County. Flowers quickly made a name for himself in the legislature and was named by Alabama Magazine as the most outstanding freshman in the Alabama House of Representatives. Flowers was re-elected four times, leaving the legislature in 1998. During his time in the Senate, Flowers maintained a record of perfect attendance, was named the most ethical member of the House of Representatives, and was voted by his colleagues as the most outstanding member of the House of Representatives in 1992. [4]
In 2002, Flowers began writing a weekly column on Alabama politics, Inside the Statehouse. Today, his column is syndicated in 66 newspapers, and has a readership of approximately 450,000. [4]
Flowers has appeared on various television stations in Alabama, analyzing recent events in state politics. In addition, Flowers has also provided political analysis for national news outlets, including CBS, ABC, PBS, MSNBC, and the BBC. [4] Flowers has also appeared on Alabama Public Radio, and hosts a thirty-minute television show, Alabama Politics, which airs in the Montgomery viewing area. [4] Those who have appeared on Alabama Polititcs include former U.S. senator Richard Shelby, former governor Robert Bentley, former U.S. senator Luther Strange, and former state treasurer Young Boozer. Flowers has also appeared on several local news outlets, including:
In 2015, Flowers published his first book, entitled Of Goats and Governors: Six Decades of Colorful Alabama Political Stories. The book covers Alabama's political history. [5]
George Corley Wallace Jr. was the 45th governor of Alabama, serving from 1963 to 1967, again from 1971 to 1979, and finally from 1983 to 1987. He is remembered for his staunch segregationist and populist views. During Wallace's tenure as governor of Alabama, he promoted "industrial development, low taxes, and trade schools." Wallace unsuccessfully sought the United States presidency as a Democratic Party candidate three times, and once as an American Independent Party candidate, carrying five states in the 1968 election. Wallace opposed desegregation and supported the policies of "Jim Crow" during the Civil Rights Movement, declaring in his 1963 inaugural address that he stood for "segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever".
Horace Julian Bond was an American social activist, leader of the civil rights movement, politician, professor, and writer. While he was a student at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia, during the early 1960s, he helped establish the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). In 1971, he co-founded the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Alabama, and served as its first president for nearly a decade.
Maryon Allen was an American journalist who served as United States Senator from Alabama for five months in 1978, after her husband, Senator James B. Allen, died in office. She held no public office prior to her appointment to her husband's old senate seat. She was appointed by Democratic Alabama Governor George Wallace.
The Black Belt is a region of the U.S. state of Alabama. The term originally referred to the region's rich, black soil, much of it in the soil order Vertisols. The term took on an additional meaning in the 19th century, when the region was developed for cotton plantation agriculture, in which the workers were enslaved African Americans. After the American Civil War, many freedmen stayed in the area as sharecroppers and tenant farmers, continuing to comprise a majority of the population in many of these counties.
Cahaba, also spelled Cahawba, was the first permanent state capital of Alabama from 1820 to 1825. It was the county seat of Dallas County, Alabama until 1866. Located at the confluence of the Alabama and Cahaba rivers, the town endured regular seasonal flooding.
The Alabama State Capitol, listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the First Confederate Capitol, is the state capitol building for Alabama. Located on Capitol Hill, originally Goat Hill, in Montgomery, it was declared a National Historic Landmark on December 19, 1960. Unlike every other state capitol, the Alabama Legislature does not meet there, but at the Alabama State House. The Capitol has the governor's office and otherwise functions as a museum.
The Indiana Statehouse is the state capitol building of the U.S. state of Indiana. It houses the Indiana General Assembly, the office of the Governor of Indiana, the Indiana Supreme Court, and other state officials. The Statehouse is located in the capital city of Indianapolis at 200 West Washington Street. Built in 1888, it is the fifth building to house the state government.
The Alabama Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is a bicameral body composed of the House of Representatives and Senate. It is one of the few state legislatures in which members of both chambers serve four-year terms and in which all are elected in the same cycle. The most recent election was on November 8, 2022. The new legislature assumes office immediately following the certification of the election results by the Alabama Secretary of State which occurs within a few days following the election.
The Alabama State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of state of Alabama. The House is composed of 105 members representing an equal number of districts, with each constituency containing at least 42,380 citizens. There are no term limits in the House. The House is also one of the five lower houses of state legislatures in the United States that is elected every four years. Other lower houses, including the United States House of Representatives, are elected for a two-year term.
The Alabama State House is a state government building in Montgomery, Alabama, United States. It houses several state agencies, most notably the Alabama Legislature, which comprises the Alabama Senate and the Alabama House of Representatives.
Jeremiah Haralson was a politician from Alabama who served as a state legislator and was among the first ten African-American United States Congressmen. Born into slavery in Columbus, Georgia, Haralson became self-educated while enslaved in Selma, Alabama. He was a leader among freedmen after the American Civil War.
The Alabama Republican Party is the state affiliate of the Republican Party in Alabama. It is the dominant political party in Alabama. The state party is governed by the Alabama Republican Executive Committee. The committee usually meets twice a year. As of the February 23, 2019 meeting in Birmingham, the committee is composed of 463 members. Most of the committee's members are elected in district elections across Alabama. The district members are elected in the Republican Primary once every four years, with the most recent election for the committee having been on June 5, 2018. The new committee takes office following the general election in November 2018. In addition, all 67 county GOP chairmen have automatic seats as voting members. The state chairman can appoint 10 members. Each county committee can appoint bonus members based on a formula that theoretically could add 312 seats, although that formula currently calls for only about 50 seats.
Bobby D. Singleton is an American politician who is currently a Democratic member of the Alabama Senate, representing the 24th District since a special election in January 2005. Previously he was a member of the Alabama House of Representatives from 2002 through 2005.
James W. Faulkner was an American political journalist from Cincinnati, Ohio, whose career spanned local politics in Cincinnati and state politics in Ohio' his writings covered the presidential campaigns of both parties from 1892 through 1920. He started his newspaper career with The Cincinnati Times-Star, and in 1887 he joined the Cincinnati Enquirer. In 1890 at the age of 27 he was assigned to Columbus, Ohio to report on the Ohio General Assembly and state politics. He observed many lobbyists had invaded the chambers of the legislature by posing as newspapermen, causing special interest group influence on the floor of the House and Senate. He formed the Ohio Legislative Correspondents Association, which required newsmen to submit credentials before gaining floor privileges, and served as its president for 24 years.
Chester Clarence "Mac" McCutcheon III is an American politician currently serving as the chair of the county commission of Madison County, Alabama. He was previously the 66th speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives. He is a Republican who served in the state legislature from 2006 to 2022. He was elected Speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives on August 15, 2016. He was re-elected Speaker of the House on January 8, 2019.
Robert Julian Bentley is an American former politician and physician who served as the 53rd governor of Alabama from 2011 until 2017 upon his resignation following his arrest after a sex scandal involving a political aide. A member of the Republican Party, Bentley was elected governor in 2010 and re-elected in 2014.
Stephen Albert McMillan was an American politician and real estate broker. From 1980 until his death, he was a member of the Alabama House of Representatives representing the 95th District, first serving as a Democrat before switching to the Republican Party in 1989. He was first elected to succeed his twin brother, John McMillan. At the time of his death, he was the longest-serving member of the Alabama House of Representatives.
Phillip W. Williams Jr. is an American politician, radio show host and attorney from the state of Alabama. A member of the Republican Party, Williams served in the Alabama Senate from 2010 until 2018, representing the 10th district, encompassing Etowah County and parts of Cherokee County. Since leaving the state legislature, Williams has served as a policy director for the Alabama Policy Institute and hosts a conservative radio program, Rightside Radio.
Will Ainsworth is an American politician serving as the 31st lieutenant governor of Alabama since 2019. He previously served in the Alabama House of Representatives from 2014 to 2018, representing its 27th district.
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