Huntsville City Council Election - August 24, 2010

Comments and observations about the City Council Races, and School Board Races

City Council Huntsville District 3

John Olshefski - The Big Man In Race.

John Olshefski is big because he is tall, has raised more money than
all of the other candidates put together, is a successful retired Army
Colonel, former Redstone Garrison Commander, and an obvious leader.
With the amount of money raised, and the number of large signs on commercial property, John Olshefski
appears destined to lead the ticket. Despite only having lived here for 5 years, and John Olshefski thinks he can overpower those short
comings of being an outsider with money and special interest support. And to his credit most political gurus think that he is basically guaranteed a spot on
the run off.

John Olshefski Democrat connections.
John Olshefski has the support of some of the Democrat forces in Huntsville.
Visual Support. Property owned by John Hayes, uncle of Democrat Jeff Enfinger has the signs of John Olshefski prominently displayed. There are two fields owned by John Hayes on South Parkway within a mile of Home Depot. These fields have the signs of Democrats
Steve Raby for Congress, Tim Mitchell for State Senate 9 that includes
south Huntsville, and of course John Olshefski, and are absent of signs
of conservative Republicans. On his web site, lists endorsement of
Sandra Steele, President, Enfinger Steele Development, Inc.

In a interview on WVNN, John Olshefski admitted that 76% of his donations were
from outside of his district and as noted by Dale Jackson, John
Olshefski refused to commit to a No Taxes Pledge.
The Huntsville Times noted that John Olshefski has raised more than
all of the other candidates combined. His donation list was printed
in the Huntsville Times, listing many high powered donors, including
Loretta Spencer and Montgomery lobbyist Steve Windom.
He has also been endorsed by the special interest group, the Huntsville
Committee of 100.


More Candidate Information District 3:

Jonathan Hitt,
an Eagle Scout. Majored in Accounting from Union University in Jackson, TN and a Master's of Accountancy from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. Jonathan and his wife, Erin, have two small children, Bethany and Nathan.
They are members of Whitesburg Baptist Church. Jonathan has made some
impressive comments reflecting knowledge of the issues at candidate
forums. Jonathan is conservative on the issues, stands against the Huntsville
Housing Authority, and has an impressive number of signs in yards.

Barry Pendergraft
Barry comes across as being very conservative and has some support of
many conservatives in south Huntsville. Barry promises no new taxes and
is the only candidate who listed on his web site the importance of
fighting Illegal Immigration. Barry has successfully
placed a large number of signs in yards. Life Member of the National Rifle Association. Recommended by the Fraternal Order of Police.

South Huntsville Civic Association Board of Directors has decided to endorse
Barry Pendergraft in the Huntsville City Council District 3 race.
Pendergraft is viewed as being a fighter, standing against the wiles
of the Huntsville Housing Authority. He served on the Huntsville Police Department from the age of 16 when he volunteered as a Police Ranger until he retired as a
Lieutenant and Commander of the south Huntsville precinct.
See endorsement of Barry Pendergraft from South Huntsville Civic Association at:
http://www.flashpointblog.com/2010/07/30/shca-endorses-pendergraft/


James Henley:
President of Jaycees. Has held leadership roles in Masonic lodge and numerous other organizations. Henley has some strong Democrat connections and has a past record of actively supporting Democrats for office.

Shannon Moore.
Has law degree of University of Alabama. Has committed to no new taxes and is committed to fighting the Huntsville Housing Authority. Said The city should look into selling empty school buildings to raise revenue.
Conservative on the issues, member of Trinity Methodist Church, and
has waged an aggressive yard sign campaign.

Deborah Sobczak, Engineer with defense contractor.

Kelly Sims,
former Mountain Gap Middle School PTA President. Formerly a member of the Alabama National Guard.

James Lomax.
James is now currently an Acquisition Management major at The University of Alabama in Huntsville where he is the president of the UAH chapter of Young Americans for Liberty, a true conservative group for young people.

James Lomax is a good speaker and a natural leader. One impressive fact is
that after a candidate forum at Grissom High School, he was the
winner of a straw poll with 27% of the vote. Has a large number of
signs in yards throughout Huntsville. James has an impressive understanding of the US Constitution and is very conservative on the issues.

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The days before the election, expect the union and AEA phone banks to be working to turn out their votes for their candidates. While this is a nonpartisan race,
Democrats use their machine to turn out voters. This powerful unseen force has effectively elected many moderates to office in the past, with Loretta Spencer being a prime example.

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Huntsville School Board District 3
Dr. Jeannie Robinson vs. Walker McGinnis vs. David Huff

Dr. Jeannie Robinson
has done a creditable job, and is the only member
of the Huntsville School Board that is independent of the influence to
the AEA. Dr. Robinson was a force getting rid of the incompetent Ann
Roy Moore as Superintendent of Huntsville City Schools. Dr. Robinson has the strongest conservative record and credentials in
this race. Jeannie Robinson received a $100 donation from City Councilwoman,
Sandra Moon, reflecting her support.

Walker McGinnis.
Has creditable experience as school administrator.
Ran 4 years ago with AEA support and financial backing. When asked
about this on the WVNN Dale Jackson Show, McGinnis refused to directly
answer about AEA support in this election. Walker McGinnis supported
the retaining of Ann Roy Moore and took an opposite position to that of Dr. Jeannie Robinson concerning the handling of the situation.

Mark Huff
is a professional musician, and ran for Congress as a Republican in the 2008 election.

Jeannie Robinson is the conservative choice.

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Huntsville School Board District 2.
David Blair, vs. Emily McDowell Elam, vs. Carole Hopper Fandre. vs.
Court Heller
All of the above support more taxes for the public schools.
David Blair previously served on the school board and proved to be independent of the AEA and did a commendable job. Emily McDowell Elam is running an expensive bill board campaign.

David Blair is clearly the best candidate in the race.
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City Council Huntsville District 4 Candidates
Bill Kling, Jacki Reed, Ed Allen

Bill Kling
has done a credible job has city councilman, has voted
against more tax increases than any other City Council member.
Introduced ordinance requiring E-verify for any company doing business with the city, they must confirm that all employees are legal residents.
Also an ordinance requiring policeman check for the Alabama state requirements
of insurance during traffic checks. This has resulted in the impounding of
many cars of those who break the law by not having insurance. An interesting result has been that several hundred illegal immigrants in our area do not come back with insurance papers, nor to they take the opportunity to obtain insurance. As a result of avoiding authority at all costs, they lose their cars.
Bill Kling has held monthly town hall meetings, listens to critics,
and has worked hard to serve his constituents. Kling is the apparent
winner in the battle of the yard signs. Bill Kling has been a fiscal conservative and he listens to people at his monthly town hall meetings.

Jacki Reed.
Retired NASA employee and Huntsville city critic.

Ed Adams.
Has interesting Hispanic background. He was born in Mexico, and came to America and became a legal citizen. He is Chairman of the Huntsville Human Relations Commission.

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The Huntsville Education Association's political arm of AEA, H-Vote, endorsements for Districts 2, 3 and 4 on Tuesday afternoon.

H-Vote AEA Endorsements:

* District 2 - Emily McDowell Elam & David Blair (H-Vote is endorsing 2 candidates in this race)
* District 3 - Walker McGinnis
* District 4 - Topper Birney

City Council

* District 2 - (no endorsement in this race; incumbent Mark Russell is running unopposed)
* District 3 - John Olshefski
* District 4 - Bill Kling

The Huntsville Education Association represents some 3,000 teachers, support employees, administrators and retired teachers/support personnel. H-Vote interviewed the candidates on Saturday, August 7, asking them about various issues affecting Huntsville.