While the two Democratic candidates for the office of Franklin County superintendent of education work to gather votes between now and the March 1, 2016, primary day, another prospective candidate continues his efforts to gather signatures to a petition that would allow him to appear on the general election ballot as an independent candidate.
Greg Hamilton, Vina High School assistant principal, is considering a run as an independent candidate for superintendent. Assistant superintendent Donald Borden and Red Bay Elementary assistant principal Johnny Cleveland qualified in the Democratic Primary, and Tharptown High School teacher and coach Bart Moss will be the Republican nominee for superintendent.
Hamilton, who declined specific comment about being a superintendent candidate until he gathers the requisite signatures, did confirm he and some supporters are presently gathering signatures for a petition that must be filed and certified by the Franklin County Probate Judge's Office on or before March 1, 2016.
The Code of Alabama provides that a candidate can obtain ballot access in the general election if he or she submits a petition with at least three percent of the qualified electors who cast ballots for the office of governor in the last general election of the county, in this case the 2014 general election.
That means Hamilton must obtain signatures (including name, address, date of birth, precinct and voting place) of at least 185 qualified electors, representing the required percentage of voters in Franklin County (excluding the City of Russellville) who cast ballots in last November's governor's race.
Because Russellville voters do not vote in the Franklin County superintendent of education race, those voters are not included when calculating the three percent, Hamilton said.
Franklin County probate judge Barry Moore, whose office is charged with certifying any petition for ballot access by an independent candidate, said the only elected position to have an independent candidate qualify during his tenure as probate judge was constable.
Major changes came to Franklin County's political landscape in 2012 when three Republicans were elected to local office, marking the first non-Democratic elected officials in the county in nearly three decades. Republican candidates qualified for all but one local office in next year's election cycle, so the two-party system remains viable in Franklin County. Hamilton hopes Franklin County voters will take the next step and consider an independent candidate in the general election.
Hamilton, varsity baseball coach at Vina High School, also coaches boys track and teaches seventh-grade civics and geography, ninth- and tenth-grade geography and senior government and economics.
“Until I get the required signatures in hand, I'm not going to make any formal announcement,” Hamilton told the Free Press Monday.
He encouraged any Franklin County voter wanting to sign the petition to contact him at 256-810-9307.
Hamilton, whose brother Brian is the chairman of the Franklin County Democratic Executive Committee, said his formal announcement, once his petition is certified, will fully outline his reasons for seeking office as an independent candidate.
Franklin County superintendent of education Gary Williams is not seeking re-election, so voters will choose a new leader for their school system next year.
The Alabama Secretary of State elections website encourages aspiring independent candidates to obtain signatures “in excess of the required number, as some signatures may not be valid and/or identifiable.”
As an uncontested primary candidate, Moss will not appear on March 1, 2016, ballots, since he has no opponent. He will appear as the Republican nominee on next year's November 1 ballot and will face the Cleveland/Borden Democratic Primary winner, and possibly Hamilton, if his petition is certified.
