Randall Woodfin Wins Birmingham Mayor Election; O'Quinn Defeats Austin

BIRMINGHAM, AL - Former Birmingham School Board president Randall Woodfin will become Birmingham's next mayor. With more than half of the precincts reporting, Woodfin held the lead over Bell, with 60 percent of the vote. Council president Johnathan Austin has also lost his bid for re-election, losing a tight race to Darrell O'Quinn. Hunter Williams, a challenger for the District 2 council seat, has defeated incumbent Kim Rafferty with nearly 70 percent of the vote. The District 9 runoff between resulted in John Hillard defeating Roderick Royal.

Voter turnout was low (less than 20 percent), just as the general election saw a low voter turnout. The senate primaries also saw a lower-than-expected turnout.

Bell, who has held a public office in Birmingham for 40 years, came close to losing the general election outright to challenger Woodfin, who received more than 40 percent of the total vote in August. (For more updates on this story and free news alerts for your neighborhood, sign up for your local Birmingham Patch morning newsletter.)

Photo by Bob Farley