By Barnett Wright
The Birmingham Times
Jefferson County Commissioner David Carrington announced Monday he plans to run for governor of Alabama.
Carrington, surrounded by family, friends, neighbors and church members, made the announcement at Vulcan Park and Museum a well-known landmark overlooking Birmingham and Jefferson County.
The 2018 Alabama gubernatorial election will take place on Nov. 6, 2018.
Carrington, a Republican, is now serving his second term on the Jefferson County Commission, Alabama’s largest local government.
Also with a number of elected officials, including Republican county commission colleagues Jimmie Stephens and Joe Knight looking on, Carrington outlined his “My Four U’s 4Us” Vision for Alabama which include unifying the state with trustworthy leadership; upgrading education; unlocking jobs and untangling the mess in Montgomery, he said.
Carrington, 69, compared the state’s problems to what he faced when first elected to the county commission in 2010.
“The county was in a mess, just like Alabama’s state government is today. So, I rolled up my sleeves, set audacious, seemingly unachievable goals, and then worked tireless with others to achieve them – just like I’ll do as your next governor,” he said.
He said the belief in change can be brought to the state’s education system.
“If you’re like me, you’re frustrated that Alabama’s K-12 education system and median family income consistently ranks in the bottom 10% nationwide that has to change! I believe in setting audacious, seemingly unachievable goals – and then working tirelessly to achieve them,” Carrington said.
He was first elected to the County Commission in November 2010, after serving on the Vestavia Hills City Council for six years, four of which as its president.
Here are Carrington’s Four U’s and his vision for the state.
Unifying Us With Trustworthy Leadership
“Developing and implementing real solutions to the state’s problems is going to require trustworthy leaders – leaders who have a proven track record of making difficult decisions regardless of the political consequences.
“It’s easy for a candidate for public office to proclaim his or her trustworthiness, but as we know from our many convicted politicians, including our last governor and speaker, as well as three of my four predecessors as president of the Jefferson County Commission, that isn’t always the case.
“I fully understand that it is up to me to continuously earn the public’s trust with my decisions, actions and statements. I can assure you that my relationships with God, my wife, my family, and those who have placed their confidence in me are too important for me to do otherwise.”
Upgrading Education
“My vision is that we embark on a strategic path to move Alabama’s K-12 system from the bottom 10% to the top 25% in the next decade. Among other things, we need to fully fund Pre-K, restore funding for the Alabama Reading Initiative, expand vocational-technical programs and fully embrace dual enrollment. In addition to those ‘in school’ initiatives, we need to double-down on our workforce development efforts for those ‘out of school’, including expanding post high school career tech training programs and offering basic math and reading courses to the more than 500,000 Alabama working adults who can’t escape the trap of a low paying job because they don’t have a high school degree.
Unlocking Jobs
“My vision is that we embark on a strategic path to move Alabama’s median family income from the bottom 10% to the top 50% in the next decade. I am often told by employers that they can’t find enough qualified employees – and I’m often told by those looking for work that they can’t find a job. Many of our college graduates don’t have a marketable degree; many of our high school graduates don’t have a marketable skill; and many of our minimum wage employees don’t have a high school degree. It’s important that we get our citizens ‘in’ the job market and then provide them with multiple training avenues to move ‘up’ in their career choice. Not only will more citizens be employed, individual employees will experience a better quality of life, and the state will enjoy higher revenues without raising taxes.
Untangling the Mess in Montgomery
“When I was first elected to the Jefferson County Commission in 2010, the county was in a mess, just like Alabama’s state government is today. So, I rolled up my sleeves, set audacious, seemingly unachievable goals, and then worked tireless with others to achieve them – just like I’ll do as your next governor. Sir Winston Churchill is quoted as saying, ‘When the eagles are silent, the parrots begin to jabber.’ It’s past time for the eagles in every Alabama county, city and town to drown out the voices of the parrots who jabber, ‘We’re doing the best we can with what we have.’ That’s balderdash! We can do better – and we must do better for our children and grandchildren – but it’s going to require a new brand of leadership in the governor’s office, one who has a proven track record of cleaning up messes created by others.”
Carrington is currently president of RacingUSA.com, one of the nation’s leading retailers of NASCAR merchandise. Before that, he was Vice President of merchandising at Parisian and president of WDC Systems, Inc.
Carrington graduated with honors from the University of Houston with an undergraduate degree in mathematics and a graduate degree in business administration. He was an Alabama Retailer of the Year in 2005 and an Acton Foundation Entrepreneurial Hero in 2009.
He has served on numerous boards, including Samford University’s Board of Overseers, the Association of County Commissions of Alabama, the Alabama City/County Management Association, the Executive Committee of the Jefferson County Republican Party, the Jefferson County Department of Health, the Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center Authority, the Greater Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau, Leadership Birmingham, Leadership Vestavia Hills and the Vestavia Hills’ Chamber of Commerce.
David and his wife, Sonia, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 2012 and are active members of Shades Mountain Baptist Church. They have two sons, two daughters-in-law and seven grandchildren.
