Selma Segregationist Elected Mayor Again

Joe Smitherman first became mayor of Selma in 1964, a white segregationist who stood at the barricades as blacks fought for the right to vote. Blacks now are a majority in Selma, and Smitherman, thanks to a narrow victory Wednesday, is still mayor.

Smitherman, 66, has maintained his stranglehold on the mayorship in this south-central Alabama town of 23,700, 60 percent of whom are black, by using a simple formula - a unified white vote and just enough black votes to win.

Tuesday’s election wasn’t decided until more than 1,000 absentee ballots were tallied Wednesday. The results showed Smitherman with 4,673, James Perkins Jr. with 4,321 and John Jowers with 39.