Small Alabama Town Wins Lawsuit Allowing Residents To Vote For First Time In Decades

gedaliyah@lemmy.worldmod to News@lemmy.world – 317 points – Small Alabama Town Wins Lawsuit Allowing Residents To Vote For First Time In Decades
huffingtonpost.co.uk

For decades, white officials appointed Newbern’s mayor and council members in lieu of holding elections. Most residents weren’t even aware that there were supposed to be elections for these positions.

The settlement will reinstate Patrick Braxton as the mayor of Newbern, the first Black person to hold the position.

Braxton was the only candidate who filed qualifying paperwork with the county clerk in 2020, so he won the mayoral race by default. The incumbent, Haywood “Woody” Stokes III, hadn’t even bothered to fill out the paperwork to run again. Haywood Stokes Jr., his father, had previously been mayor of the rural Black Belt town.

Cross posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/16944653

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Why not Federal prison? NOTHING they did was legal and at least the mayor (sic) and city council knew full well they were subverting the Democratic principles of the US.

No fine, no probation. Prison for these manipulative shits

In america better people are not subject to the laws imposed on the loser classes.

Always has been this way and yet "we" are always "shocked"

Good news. One of the most overt examples of organized racism in the modern era. I hope they make real change.

I remember when this happened, and I was stunned. There are only 133 people in the town and the vast majority of them are black, it should have been a self solving problem to throw out the white minority.

Another good article here:

https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/06/us/newbern-alabama-mayor-dispute/index.html

Kinda hard to throw them out when the majority didn't know that they could.

Most residents weren’t even aware that there were supposed to be elections for these positions.

I think he was meaning more "run them out of town" and less "vote them out of office"

Only white people can run people out of towns in the US without facing over the top legally supported retribution.

Does this mean everything the previous administration, every action taken every policy passed, every decision ruled on is void because they were illegitimate

Glad they won the ability (really their right) to vote. Insane this was happening but also not surprised. Get that Haywood guy out of there.

The incumbent, Haywood “Woody” Stokes III, hadn’t even bothered to fill out the paperwork to run again. Haywood Stokes Jr., his father, had previously been mayor of the rural Black Belt town.

The end of a dynasty. Good riddance.

Braxton, who was born in Newbern and described himself as a “handyman for the community,” hasn’t been able to access town funds since Stokes was appointed as mayor four years ago. He has used his own money to provide residents with COVID-19 supplies, as well as to host food drives and other events, according to The Guardian.

Sounds like they voted for the right person.

Haywood Stokes Jr., his father, had previously been mayor of the rural Black Belt town.

Gotta watch out for all those Martial Arts experts! 🤣