By Je’Don Holloway Talley | For The Birmingham Times
State Rep. Juandalynn Givan, who finished a distant third in Tuesday’s Birmingham mayor’s race, ended her campaign the way she began it: Firing on all cylinders.
The mayoral hopeful did not address her supporters during a Watch Party at the 4 Seasons Sports Bar & Grill on Graymont Ave. and by nine o’clock most had left anyway except for a few loyalists, but when approached by a Birmingham Times reporter in the restaurant’s back room the candidate did not hold back.
“I’ve said this time and time again, if the people of Birmingham like what they have, at the end of the day, on August 26th, they will keep it,” she told The Birmingham Times. “I believe in democracy, and I believe that democracy spoke. And the vote said that the people of Birmingham liked what they had.
“So, with that being said, I also leave the citizens of Birmingham with this: It is a clear indication that the city of Birmingham does not have a belief that a woman can lead this city. And I think that’s the thing that bothers me the most … I think that’s the takeaway.”
“And I think it’s very obvious,” she continued. “The [crime] numbers are almost similar to what they were four years ago with a crime rate that is [number] two or three in the country, nearly 1,000 people dead, potholes in the streets, brush, litter, debris, and overgrown lots that have not been repaired, restored, or fixed in eight years.”
“So what do you think is going to change in the next four [years]? But the people have spoken. And with that being said, I’ve done what I needed to do. My job and task was to tell the world and I think I did a good job of that.”
According to unofficial results, incumbent Randall Woodfin won his third term on Tuesday with 24,559 votes, or 74.87 percent; Jefferson County Commissioner Lashunda Scales finished second with 4,781 votes, or 14.5 percent and Givan finished third with 1,395 votes for 4.2 percent.
One of her biggest challenges during the campaign was not being accepted by other women, Givan said.
“The women of Birmingham were atrocious. I’m just going to say it. There’s just no way around it,” she said. “I went to a precinct [Tuesday] afternoon, and this was another candidate’s person, … and she said that working the precinct she felt as if almost she was traumatized because the reaction from the women was so mean and so nasty and so dismissive.”
“It was challenging connecting with the women, and the women are the predominant voters here in the city of Birmingham. And, unfortunately, the women are the biggest critics. And that’s just a realization, but it’s not just here. It’s in many [cities and states]. Unfortunately, sometimes with these types of elections, that’s just the mentality that we have.”
She continued, “this was a very interesting process trying to run citywide. I represent a district. But what I did see is that the women have no appetite, not only myself but other women said the same thing [as it pertains to] women leadership on this level. I think tonight was a clear indication here in the city of Birmingham that we are not ready for women leadership.”
“We saw it nationally with [Presidential candidate] Kamala Harris. Although we [female political leaders] fight the good fight, we tell the truth, we lay it out on the line, [they say] we’re either not smart enough, we don’t fit the bill, our looks are not the looks of those that should be in office, our dress is not the dress of those that should be in office, and unfortunately [they want to say] we’re not the brightest one in the room. So with that being said, the people spoke, and they liked what they liked.”
Givan said her campaign was based on “making it make sense” which was a message she hammered on her social media channels.
“I made it make sense that we have communities that are under siege . . .,” she said. “I made it make sense that the lots are overgrown, that the potholes are not filled. But also I made it make sense tonight, that my statement held true. If you like what you have, you keep it. And so with that, the people decided to keep it. And so we just move forward.”
Givan, who ran unsuccessfully for Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District 2024, Birmingham mayor in 2025, said she will run again for Alabama House of Representatives District 60, seeking a fifth term, in 2026.
“I show up when others are nowhere around,” she said. “I’m there to answer every call for help, and it has been like that for 15 years. So much so that a few years ago I wore myself down, I wore myself thin. But with that being said, I’m going to keep on pushing and keep on kicking.”
