A Birmingham-area Democrat and former donor to U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell (D-Birmingham) and former U.S. Sen. Doug Jones has entered a special election to determine which party has the majority on the Jefferson County Commission.
Former Jefferson County commissioner Steve Ammons announced in May that he would be stepping down to become the Birmingham Business Alliance CEO.
Ammons' resignation leaves two Republicans and two Democrats on the five-person commission. The special election on July 18 will determine which party will have the majority.
The open seat is for District 5, which includes Mountain Brook, Vestavia Hills, Homewood and Hoover.
David Silverstein is a real estate developer in the Birmingham area. He declared his candidacy for the District 5 special election on Monday night. Of his $162,450 contributions to political candidates in the past, 82% have gone to Democratic candidates like Sewell, Jones and even former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman, who he gave a total of $30,000 between 2001 and 2002.
He has recently become an outspoken advocate for Medicaid expansion.
Currently, Silverstein's contender in the race is former Alabama Supreme Court Justice Mike Bolin, a Republican and graduate of Cumberland School of Law. Bolin served on the Alabama Supreme Court from 2004 to the beginning of this year.
Last month, Birmingham-area urologist and Republican Brian Christine declared his candidacy in the special election but later withdrew from the race to support Bolin.
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