Curry ousts Zaragoza for mayor; Ammons drops out of Place 3 runoff

When November rolls around, four new faces will take a seat in the council chambers.

With Steve Ammons dropping out of a runoff for Place 3 and the defeat of Mayor Butch Zaragoza and Place 1 Councilor John Henley, Place 4 Councilor George Pierce was the only incumbent to win in the Aug. 23 election.

Former FBI agent Ashley Curry won the mayoral race with a higher number of votes in all precincts except absentee, where the candidates tied.

Place 1 went to area attorney and youth recreation coach Rusty Weaver thanks to a strong showing at the Liberty Park Baptist Church and Cahaba Heights Community Center polling precincts.

Henley said he is thankful for his opportunity to have served the last four years.

“I appreciate all of the support, and I hope you join me in helping our new mayor and City Council continue our city on a great path in the next four years,” Henley said.

With current councilor Jim Sharp stepping down and not running for re-election, Place 2 was guaranteed to bring a new member to the council, and that spot was won by former data systems engineer Kimberly Cook, who also had a strong showing in Liberty Park and Cahaba Heights.

Though she didn’t win, Place 2 candidate Kim Benos said she feels blessed to have had the opportunity to run and was thankful for the support she received.

“I have a new, deeper respect for all who offer themselves to run for public office. Congratulations and blessings to Ashley Curry, Rusty Weaver, Kimberly Cook, Paul Head and George Pierce,” she said.

Incumbent for Place 4, Pierce was at City Hall on election night with his family, including his eight grandchildren, as the results came in. Pierce carried all precincts, including absentee ballots, and he and his family celebrated when the final tally was called out.

“I’m excited,” Pierce said. “I’m humbled by the trust of our citizens. I’m humbled by the turnout for voting. It shows our citizens want to be involved. We’ve got to listen to them.”

Pierce said he thinks his focus on listening to citizens is the reason for his wide margin of victory, and that he plans to continue to engage with residents both online through social media, as well as in other ways.

“I listen to the people, I don’t shy away from them,” he said.

No Runoff for Place 3

In a race between three candidates for the same Place, one candidate has to receive 50 percent-plus-one in order to win. Otherwise, the race automatically goes into a runoff between the candidates with the top two total votes.

In the race for Place 3, the runoff would have been between incumbent councilor Steve Ammons and local CFO and youth recreation coach Paul Head.

However, in an effort he said was to move the city forward, Ammons decided to drop out of the race, giving Head the win.

Moving Forward

Curry said the campaign was “incredible,” and that he is thankful for the support of friends and family as well as voters.

“I’m just truly humbled, truly, by the encouragement, the support of friends, family, it’s just been overwhelming,” he said.

In the time before the new council takes office Nov. 8, Curry said he hopes to work with Zaragoza on making the transition as smooth as possible.

“I appreciate Butch. He has been very cordial throughout the entire event, a real gentleman,” Curry said, adding that Zaragoza has already extended the invitation to bring him up to speed. 

“I will gladly take him up on that offer,” he said, “I’m just pleased with what he’s done for the city, and I hope I can improve on that.”

In the days and weeks before inauguration, Curry said he wants to “take a deep breath,” then look at the city’s needs and wants and determine what the priorities are.

Pierce echoed Curry’s sentiments, saying the new council members should go ahead and get involved with citizens before they take office.

“I would suggest they reach out, learn as much as they can,” Pierce said, and added he would be willing to work with them personally as well.

The council had already postponed discussion of the city’s budget in order to get feedback from the incoming council members, and Pierce said the new group will meet with City Manager Jeff Downes in the coming weeks to get prepared so that when November arrives they can “hit the road running.”