After what became a contentious race that saw vote-registration rallies and complaints filed with the Secretary of State’s Office and U.S. Justice Department, the Alabama Senate District 28 Democratic runoff belonged to Clayton pharmacist Billy Beasley.
Beasley received 62 percent of the vote to defeat former six-term Tuskegee mayor and legislator Johnny Ford, 9,956 to 6,022. He will campaign against Auburn veterinarian Kim West in the November general election to determine which candidate replaces Sen. Myron Penn (D-Union Springs), who is not seeking re-election.
Ford, however, carried Lee County earning 728 votes to Beasley’s 357.
“I congratulated Mr. Beasley and let him know that if there’s any way I can be supportive in the future, I will be,” said Ford, who also served in the Alabama House from 1999-2004. “We were friends in the Legislature and I look forward to being his continued friend.
“I want to express my sincere appreciation to the hundreds of volunteers who worked so hard for our campaign. Any time you face that kind of money and political influence, it’s a challenge.”
Though this bid to re-enter the Legislature failed, Ford hinted his political career is not over.
“I had planned to only run for the Senate. I was sincere to maintain this district as a majority-minority district (where a minority serves as a district’s representative). I can never say never when it comes to politics because I love serving people. I don’t know how to do anything else.”
Attempts to reach Beasley, the sitting Alabama House District 84 representative, before press time Tuesday were unsuccessful.

The lady’s voice at the end of the commercial states, “Billy Beasley. A good man for state senate.”

That’s not just campaign rhetoric. That’s the truth. And that’s one reason we wholeheartedly endorse Mr. Beasley in next week’s Democratic Primary run-off.

Beasley has represented Barbour, Bullock and Russell counties well in the Alabama House since he was first elected in 1998. (He didn’t face opposition in 2002 or ’06.) But he’s not a career politician.

Beasley served in the U.S. Army Medical Service Corp. stationed in San Antonio, Texas, and has owned several small drug stores, including Clayton Drug Company and Clio Drug Company. (At one time he owned Toomer’s Corner Drugs in downtown Auburn – one of the nation’s most famous drug stores.)

Beasley is the past president and a member of Alabama Pharmacy Association, and was the recipient of pharmacy’s most prestigious award, the Bowl of Hygeia. When the Alabama House is not in session, he can usually be found at one of the two drug stores filling a prescription or talking with a concerned constituent.

He has worked closely with the Barbour County Commission, Eufaula City Council and other governing bodies when needed. And it’s not uncommon to see him at community events. He supports RSVP of Barbour County, city and county schools and other community organizations – even when it’s not election time.

We haven’t always agreed with Beasley on the issues. But he’s always been honest and upfront with us when discussing why he voted the way he did. And unlike many politicians, he returns our phone calls.

He’s earned our respect, and the respect of those in his house district. We have no doubt he would do the same thing if elected to the state senate.

We believe Mr. Beasley would work well with members of both political parties for the betterment of this district and the state. He certainly wouldn’t embarrass us.

However, we can’t say the same thing about his challenger, Johnny Ford. The long-time mayor from Tuskegee has foolishly brought racism into this campaign, and also made allegations against the Beasley campaign that he has yet to prove.

Ford says he should be elected because he is black, and the district is “majority-minority.” We disagree. Black voters should choose who they think will be the best candidate – regardless of race. Mr. Beasley has been a good representative for blacks and whites. He would do the same as a senator.

The choice is clear next Tuesday. Beasley is the best man for Barbour County, District 28 and the State of Alabama.

We encourage all voters to go the polls Tuesday. There have been many instances where the favored candidate has failed to win a run-off election because his or her supporters mistakenly thought there was no way the challenger could win.

While Beasley received nearly twice as many votes as Ford last month, they both start at zero this Tuesday. The candidate who does the best job of mobilizing his supporters could easily be the winner. That’s why supporters of Mr. Beasley need to return to the polls if they want him to win his party’s nomination.
-PJ

On Thursday, the sitting District 28 state senator from Union Springs endorsed Rep. Billy Beasley over Johnny Ford in the July 13 Democratic runoff.

“Over the last decade, I have worked closely with Billy Beasley, and I know he will work tirelessly for all the people of this Senate district,” said Penn, who has represented the district for the past eight years. “He is a man of character who will continue to move this district forward through the issues that we will face over the next four years.”

Beasley, a Clayton resident who now represents District 84 in the House, nearly won the primary outright on June 1, taking 48 percent of the vote in what was a five-man race. Ford drew 28 percent, finishing second and earning a spot in the runoff.

The primary winner will face Auburn Republican Kim West in the general election.

“Myron and I have been friends for a long time, and we’ve talked about the campaign for the last several months,” Beasley said. “I want to make District 28 a better place for all people, including more job opportunities.

“I think Sen. Penn is looking at the future of District 28. He feels I have the experience, qualifications, desire and passion to be the best senator going into 2011.”

by Sebastian Kitchen

MONTGOMERY, ALA. — The Alabama House has passed a bill to pump $1 billion into construction and repairs for the state’s roads and bridges.
But House members amended the bill more than a dozen times adding numerous projects including airport runways, improvements at the state docks, advertising for rural newspapers, and high speed rail projects. The bill passed the House after 10 p.m. Tuesday.

The House sponsor, Democratic Rep. Billy Beasley of Clayton, said the Senate-passed bill was changed heavily in the House and he hopes the problems can be worked out in a House-Senate conference committee.

Beasley said he agreed to all the amendments in an attempt to keep the bill from being killed because of his concern for the condition of the state’s roads.

By: Guy Rhodes

As a businessman and a member of the Alabama Legislature, Billy Beasley believes he brings a special perspective to the job he is seeking — state senator for District 28.

Beasley brought his campaign to Macon County Thursday, March 18 at a town hall meeting. The gathering attended by about 30 people was moved to the Kellogg Conference Center on the campus of Tuskegee University after first scheduled for the Macon County Courthouse.

A product of Barbour County where he owns pharmacies in Louisville, Clio and his hometown Clayton, Beasley is completing his third term as the District 80 representative in the Alabama House. He was unopposed for that seat in the 2002 and 2006 elections.

Barbour County is known for its politics — having produced the most governors in Alabama history, including four-term governor George Wallace.

Beasley’s older brother, Jere, served as the state’s lieutenant governor and has been a gubernatorial candidate. Jere Beasley is one of the top trial lawyers in the country and is campaign manager for Congressman Artur Davis, who is seeking to become Alabama’s first black American governor.

Beasley’s wife, Rebecca, is serving her third term as mayor of Clayton and was the city’s first female council member. She is also owner, editor and publisher of Clayton’s newspaper, which has been in her family for years.

Beasley served three years as an officer at Brooke Army General Hospital in Ford Hood, Texas where he helped train pharmacy technicians for the U.S. Army after graduating with his pharmacy degree from Auburn University. He owned Auburn’s famed Toomer’s Drugs for six years before selling the business.

The senate candidate was raised by his father and grandmother after his mother died when he was 11 years old. He grew up on a farm owned by his father, who also operated a family grocery business. Beasley’s farming chores had to be worked in before and after football practice at the local high school.

“My mother taught me the value of education before she died, and my father taught me the value of hard work and discipline,” Beasley said. “In running my retail drug stores, I have learned the importance of relationships you develop with the people you serve and the people you work with.”

Beasley added he’s learned lessons about being knocked down and getting back up by not feeling sorry for himself, explaining he attempted a couple of businesses that didn’t make it and went through a divorce before he and Rebecca married in 1980.

Even though he had been around the political scene growing up in Barbour County and his brother’s ventures into state politics, Beasley didn’t attempt to move into public office until 1998 when legendary Alabama Speaker of the House Jimmy Clarke decided to not run again after four terms as house speaker.

“I asked myself did I really want to be a candidate. I decided to run, but didn’t borrow a dime to campaign,” he said.

After serving three terms in the House, Beasley had a decision to make when Myron Penn of Union Springs decided not to run for a third term as District 28 senator.

“I love serving people, and you can’t be a public servant without taking pride in that. I’m not in the business of self-serving myself,” Beasley explained. “I don’t have a big ego about being in public service.”

After Penn’s decision to not seek reelection, Beasley said reason number two he’s in the race is, “I think I’m the best person running for this job. If I’m elected to the senate, I won’t do anything to embarrass you.”

With qualifying scheduled to end April 2, other Democratic Party candidates for the District 28 seat include: Johnny Ford, a former seven-term mayor of Tuskegee and former District 82 member of the Alabama House of Representatives; Locy Baker of Henry County, who is completing his second term in the Alabama House of Representatives; Howard Burton, Macon County businessman and first-time candidate; and Samuel Harris, former Auburn City Council member and teacher at Booker T. Washington High School in Tuskegee. The only republican candidate is Dr. Kim West  of Auburn.

Macon County Commissioner Drew Thompson and Shorter Town Clerk Harold Powell decided to not run for the seat after earlier announcing they would be candidates.

Beasley said there are a number of issues facing Alabama and District 28, which includes all or portions of Macon, Bullock, Lee, Henry, Barbour and Russell Counties

He mentioned jobs, road construction for infrastructure, gaming, partnerships, education and health care as being of importance to constituents in District 28.

“Too many jobs are being outsourced to other countries. We need to bring jobs to Macon County and other counties in District 28,” Beasley pointed out. “Too many people have to make sacrifices to afford health care and prescription drugs. Generic drugs have offered some relief the past 15 to 20 years. They are much cheaper while still being quality drugs.”

As for jobs threatened by closures of gambling venues, including VictoryLand in Macon County that has employed as many as 2,000, Beasley believes Gov. Bob Riley has exceeded his authority in creating an Anti-Gambling Task Force to shut down gaming establishments.

After being closed almost a month, VictoryLand reopened March 5 with the aid of a temporary restraining order from a judge in the Macon County circuit to prevent the Task Force from shutting down the business and seizing machines and proceeds.

Riley and his Task Force commander, Mobile District Attorney John Tyson, have sought relief through the courts system for the Task Force to continue its efforts to shut down gambling operations.

Beasley said it’s the role of the Alabama Legislature to pass legislation that would allow people of the state to vote electronic bingo up or down.

He then moved on to discuss other issues impacting District 28 and Macon County.

“The agriculture business has about been destroyed the past 10 years with the cost of chemicals and equipment. Too much produce comes from elsewhere. Those products need to come from District 28 and there needs to be a decent wage for those products.”

Beasley pointed out the tremendous growth in the automobile industry has impacted parts of Alabama much more than in District 28.

“We need to do something for Southeast Alabama,” he said. “It’s important for the counties to work together to sell the area. We need to bond for a common goal.”

Beasley is a strong supporter of the Alabama Roads and Bridge Bill. He’s the House sponsor of the bill that would spend $1 billion —$100 million a year for the next 10 years — using interest from the state’s oil and drilling trust fund to improve roads in the state.

The funds would be divided among the state, counties and cities with city funding based on percentage of population of municipalities in each county.

“Voters would have to approve the measure through a constitutional amendment,” Beasley explained. “Citizens will have the final say about us having better and safer roads for businesses, industry and such things as school buses.”

As for education, Beasley is a strong supporter of K-12 and higher education. But he also believes there needs to be a stronger emphasis placed on career tech and trade programs. He is convinced students who can readily learn how to play video games can certainly be taught reading, writing and arithmetic with the right motivation, starting at the home.

“We’ve got to set the right examples and create a respect for authority. And we probably need to be in church more than we are,” Beasley commented.