For Justin Ennis, MAGA means “Make Albertville Great Again!” That's why he recently launched his campaign for mayor of Albertville.
“My connection to Albertville has been a lifelong one, filled with fond memories and experiences,” Ennis, who owns a construction business, said in a Facebook post. “After traveling across the United States, I am grateful to still call it my home. I have decided to give back to the community by running for office in the city that means the world to me.”
Ennis said the decision to run wasn’t an easy one, but he felt he had to do something to protect his hometown.
“I’m scared the Albertville we once knew, the one where everyone knew everyone, is becoming a city of the past. I understand growth can be a great thing for a city, but also know the needs and the comfort of its citizens is a greater thing. A rich city means nothing to the people living in it if the city can’t and won’t provide the needs and comfort the people need.”
In a phone interview with 1819 News, Ennis said, “It takes the mayor and, of course, the city council. So I'm not going in on a bunch of promises. I'm going in with saying, this is my vision. I would love to be able to work on these things. And I think that there are a lot of like-minded people who feel the same way.”
Ennis said he would focus on attracting more high-quality jobs to the area and providing housing that middle-class workers can afford.
“With the laws we have in place at the moment and the laws we have that are not being enforced, we will never have anything but cheap rentals as the houses age,” he said in his announcement.
Ennis also stated that the city must do everything possible to support local schools and teachers.
“Our school system needs the adequate resources to make our school system one of the greatest in this state once again. Our teachers shouldn’t want to drop their kids at other school systems before going to teach in Albertville. There is a problem no one wants to talk about but it needs discussed and fixed so these teachers won’t feel this way. There is no doubt our teachers and principals are still among the greatest there is. We just need to focus on their needs to get the students back performing on the level we all want them on.”
Ennis was among many Albertville residents who raised concerns about the influx of migrants, both legal and otherwise, into the city.
"Immigration is obviously a federal-level situation. How we deal with it here is we've got to have some unity because there's not a lot that we can do about it. We do have to learn to unite with these people. It takes it from both sides," he told 1819 News. "I don't feel like anybody that I've spoken to in this city is saying, 'Oh, get rid of these people. Get rid of these people.' But I do feel like people are concerned about it."
Ennis is running against incumbent mayor Tracy Honea, who ran unopposed last cycle.
“I plan to run a clean campaign. Simply put, if you believe in term limits, IT’S TIME! This seat has not been changed in 13 years,” Ennis said.
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