| Lowell Ray Barron | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Alabama Senate from the 8th district |
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| In office 1982 - 2010 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | April 22, 1942 Jackson County, Alabama |
| Political party | Democratic Party |
| Profession | Pharmacist and Businessman |
| Religion | Baptist |
Lowell Ray Barron is a successful businessman and a former member of the Alabama Senate, representing the 8th District since 1982. Barron, who is a Democrat, was elected President Pro Tem of the Alabama Senate from 1999 to 2007. After serving seven terms in the state Senate, he was defeated by 500 votes in one of Alabama's most shocking 2010 general election upsets by political newcomer Republican Shadrack McGill. Alabama's 8th Senate district includes all of Jackson County and parts of DeKalb and Madison Counties.
Barron was born in Jackson County. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in pharmacy from Auburn University and, in 1965, opened a pharmacy in Fyffe. He was elected Mayor of Fyffe in 1968, a position he held until 1982, when he was first elected to the Alabama Senate.
New elections for the state Senate and House were held in 1983 after district lines were redrawn, and the Alabama Democratic Party picked nominees rather than holding new primary elections. After serving in the Senate for one year, Barron was not selected as the Democratic nominee. He subsequently waged the first and only successful write-in campaign for the Alabama Legislature and won the Democratic nomination. Barron encouraged people to write in “Lowell Barron” with the “itty bitty pencils” his campaign distributed, and his write-in campaign still stands as one of the most successful in American history. The Senate district contained three counties (DeKalb, Jackson and Madison), but Barron received write-in votes in 26 of Alabama’s 67 counties.
Barron was elected by the full Senate as president pro tempore for two terms (1999–2007). In 1999, the Democratic-held legislature stripped much of the powers of the Republican Lieutenant Governor of Alabama, who was the presiding officer of the Alabama Senate. Senators changed the Senate rules to give those much of those powers it to the President Pro Tempore, which increased Barron's influence. Barron was reelected as President Pro Tem in 2003. After the 2006 elections, Barron did not run for Pro Tem but instead was appointed Chair of the powerful Senate Rules Committee. Democrat Senator Hinton Mitchem succeeded Barron as Pro Tem in 2007.
Barron made national and international news in June 2007 when fellow Senator Charles Bishop, a Republican Senator and former Democratic Senate Rules Chairman in the 1980s, hit Barron while on the Senate floor. According to the Birmingham News Bishop accused Barron of using profanity after Bishop (R-Jasper) confronted Barron on floor of the Senate. Barron was working on a Senate Rules Committee report when Bishop became angered because, in a procedural move, he had lost his turn to debate the issue pending before the Senate when Senator Pat Lindsey (D-Butler) was presiding. Bishop punched Barron in the face, and fellow Senators, including Parker Griffith (D-Huntsville), Bobby Denton (D-Muscle Shoals) and others, saw the attack and restrained Bishop.[1]
Barron has four children, and eight grandchildren. He resides in Rainsville, Alabama. He is a Baptist. Barron is an Auburn fan and served on the Auburn University Board of Trustees from 1993 to 2003. He lists golf, gardening, family and tennis as his hobbies.