Bradley Byrne

Bradley Byrne
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Alabama's 1st district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 8, 2014
Preceded by	Jo Bonner
Member of the Alabama Senate from the 32nd district
In office January 2003 – January 2007
Preceded by	Albert Lipscomb
Succeeded by	Trip Pittman
Personal details
Born	(1955-02-16) February 16, 1955 Mobile, Alabama, U.S.
Political party	Democratic (Before 1997) Republican (1997–present)
Spouse(s)	Rebecca Byrne
Children	5
Alma mater	Duke University University of Alabama, Tuscaoolsa
Religion	Episcopalian

Bradley Byrne is a business attorney and Republican congressman for Alabama's first congressional district. He served as chancellor of the Alabama Community College System from 2007 until his resignation in 2009 to run for the 2010 Republican nomination for Governor of Alabama.^[1][2] He was also a member of the Alabama State Senate from 2003 to 2007. He holds a degree from Duke University, where he was a member of the Phi Delta Theta Fraternity, he also attended the University of Alabama.^[3] In December 2013, he won a special election to represent Alabama's 1st congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Political background

Byrne's first run for elective office was in 1994 was a success when he ran for the Alabama State Board of Education as a Democrat.^[3][4] During his term on the State Board of Education, Byrne supported a science curriculum that was opposed by many religious leaders in Alabama. He later voted with the Board to support a compromise that said, "Explanations of the origin of life and major groups of plants and animals, including humans, shall be treated as theory and not as fact. When attempting to apply scientific knowledge to world problems, no social agenda shall be promoted." ^[5] In 1996 Byrne voted with the majority of Board members to reject $18 million in federal education funds because it was feared the money would allow greater federal control of schools. The vote was seen as a nod to the growing conservative influence in his south Alabama district.^[5] However Byrne later changed his mind and convinced the Board to allow the money ^[6]

In 1997 Byrne left the Democratic party and became a Republican.^[7]

In 2002 Byrne ran for an Alabama State Senate seat.^[8] He won with 91% of the vote over his Democratic challenger.^[9]

In 2013, Byrne sought and gained the Republican nomination for the United States House of Representatives, Alabama, District 1.^[10]

Efforts against corruption

In May 2007, Byrne took the position of community college chancellor ^[11] and oversaw a controversial reordering of much of the system. Bishop State Community College in Mobile was the target of investigators who found both financial and academic issues at the school in 2006 and 2007. Byrne ordered an audit of the school which demonstrated many deficiencies. At the time, about 2 dozen people were charged with criminal fraud and theft charges. A total of 27 would be charged before the probe ended in May 2007 ^[11][12]

Byrne also worked with Alabama Attorney General Troy King to recover monies stolen from the community college system.^[13]

2010 Gubernatorial campaign

During the campaign, he was accused by his opponents in the Republican primary of supporting evolution, to which he replied, "As a Christian and as a public servant, I have never wavered in my belief that this world and everything in it is a masterpiece created by the hands of God ... As a member of the Alabama Board of Education, the record clearly shows that I fought to ensure the teaching of creationism in our school text books. Those who attack me have distorted, twisted and misrepresented my comments and are spewing utter lies to the people of this state."^[14]

Endorsements

Individuals:

• Jeb Bush^[15]
• Jack Edwards (U.S. Rep. AL-1)^[16]
• Jimmy Rane (President of Great Southern Wood)^[17]
• Conservative Blogger Brian LeCompte; State Senator Ben Brooks; State Representatives Mike Ball, Phil Williams, Jamie Ison, Chad Fincher, Victor Gaston, and Jim Barton; Mobile City Council members John Williams, and Connie Hudson ^[18][19]

Associations:

• Alabama Retail Association^[20]
• Alabama Home Builders Association^[21]
• Alabama Association of Realtors^[22]
• Associated Builders and Contractors of Alabama^[23]
• Right on Huntsville^[24]

Newspapers:

• The Birmingham News^[25]
• The Mobile Press Register^[25]
• The Huntsville Times^[25]
• Opelika-Auburn News^[26]
• Scottsboro Daily Sentinel^[27]

Post-election activity

Following the run-off, Byrne went back to practicing business law, joining the Jones Walker law firm on August 16, 2010.^[28]

Reform Alabama

On February 23, 2011, Byrne announced he was partnering with other prominent Alabamians to create a nonprofit organization that would push for reforms in state government.^[29] Named "Reform Alabama", the organization actively supported legislation in the 2011 Alabama Regular Legislative Session.^[30]

Possible Supreme Court run

A May 25, 2011 Mobile Press-Register article reported that Byrne was considering the possibility of running for chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court in the upcoming 2012 election. "I’ve been encouraged to look at it, and I’m doing that. But I’ve made no decision, and frankly I’m no where near a decision at this point," Byrne said.^[31]

2013 Congressional campaign

On May 23, 2013, U.S. Representative Jo Bonner announced that he would resign, effective on August 15, 2013.^[32] Byrne won the Republican primary and the November 5 runoff to become the nominee for the general election in December.

Byrne faced Dean Young in the runoff election who received the support of Tea Party voters. After the runoff, Young refused to endorse Byrne which led to rumors of a rift within the Republican Party. But Byrne subsequently gained the endorsement of Alabama Patriots, a Tea Party affiliated organization.^[33] Byrne won the Republican nomination for the congressional seat and faced Democratic Party nominee Burton LeFlore on December 17, 2013.^[10][34]

References

External links

• Bradley Byrne for Congress
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart