By Sym Posey | The Birmingham Times
First James D. Stewart Jr. made history. Now he wants to make a difference.
As Irondale’s first African American mayor — elected in November 2020 and in August for a second term — Stewart has his city on the move.
“The first term, you’re just trying to feel your way,” he told The Birmingham Times. “The second term, I’ve already seen the hand of God. There’s nothing that comes my way that I don’t believe we can make happen.”
He points to major investments, including a new Costco development coming in the spring of 2028, athletic fields, a $1 million dog park, a new library on Grants Mill Road, a fire station, an expanded civic center, and long-term plans to redevelop Irondale’s downtown corridor into what Stewart calls a “gathering spot.”
“Whoever would have thought the smallest city in the state of Alabama would attract Costco?” he said. “Our God just keeps blessing us.”
Listening to the People
Stewart emphasized that many of the city’s projects were guided directly by residents through a comprehensive community survey titled Blueprint Irondale.
“We asked the citizens what they wanted to see,” he said. “About 1,400 people responded, and we just followed the plan.”
That community-centered approach also shapes how Stewart communicates. From monthly “Message with the Mayor” updates to newsletters, podcasts, social media, a city app and even grocery store conversations, Stewart prides himself on accessibility.
“If somebody tells you they don’t know what’s going on in Irondale, they lying,” he said with a laugh.
Called to Ministry
After graduating with an accounting degree from Tennessee State University, Stewart worked at the downtown Birmingham post office for 12 years, including seven years in the accounting office, before he moved to Crown Financial Ministries, teaching biblical finances to families.
“When I left the post office 20 years ago, I left because I was called to teach people to manage money from a biblical perspective,” Stewart said in a past interview with AL.com.
In that job, he was a missionary who had to raise his own financial support. “For those four years, we never went without a meal,” he said. “I had an opportunity to see how obedience works when you do what you’ve been called to do.”
Stewart founded a church in 2010 in Irondale called the Lighthouse and served as pastor for four years.
After he took the Irondale city clerk job, he realized he needed to give up being a pastor.
In 2014, he joined the Church of the Highlands, which is the state’s largest church and has its main campus in Irondale. Stewart became a small group leader.
“I learned a lot through small group studies and building relationships while I’ve been there,” Stewart said.
Unexpected Opportunity
He ran for mayor in 2012, lost by 21 votes to Tommy Joe Alexander. The loss he once believed marked the end of his political aspirations. “I thought that was confirmation that the dream was over,” he said.
Instead, that loss led to an unexpected opportunity. The very mayor who defeated him later asked Stewart to serve as city clerk, a role he held for eight years.
“That same itch came back,” Stewart said. “Once it’s in you, it never leaves you.”
In 2020, after what he describes as a moment of prayer and reflection, Stewart decided to run again — despite taking a $73,000 pay cut as the mayor to do so.
“My faith drives me in everything,” he said. “It may be foolish faith, it may be crazy faith, but I don’t know any other way to live.”
This time he won defeating Alexander.
Living The Dream
Stewart leads a predominantly white municipality with an approach rooted in faith, community engagement and an unwavering belief in possibility. After winning reelection in August, Stewart said the moment carried deep personal significance.
“It means a lot to me, because in this day and age, to be able to find mayors that are African Americans in predominantly white cities are far and few between,” he said. “It means that the people in the city of Irondale did not look at the color of my skin, but they looked at the content of my character.”
That trust, he said, represents the realization of a dream larger than himself.
“I am living Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream,” Stewart said. “They decided to give me another four years, and I’m very grateful for that opportunity.”
Being First
Although Stewart made history when he first won the office in 2020, he said the weight of being “the first” didn’t set in until after the victory.
“You never really think about being the first until you become the first,” he said. “When one of us wins for the first time, the whole community wins.”
With that milestone came a responsibility that extended beyond Irondale’s city limits.
“I realized that I’m not just the mayor for African Americans in Irondale,” Stewart said. “I’m like the mayor for African Americans throughout the whole region. When you’re the first, it comes with the territory.”
Legacy Over Titles
Asked how he hopes history will remember him, Stewart didn’t hesitate. “I want it to say that James Douglas Stewart Jr. was a drum major for justice,” he said. “That he impacted his community in a very positive way.”
For Stewart, legacy is not about accolades — it’s about family.
“I just want my grandkids to be proud of me,” he said. “And at the end of the day, I want to finish well.”
At 62, Stewart says he is entering what he calls the “last chapter,” one focused on mentorship, economic education and closing the wealth gap in African American communities — a subject he is currently researching as part of his doctoral studies at the University of North Alabama.
“I’ve lived long enough trying to accomplish things,” he said. “Now my life is about helping others.”
Still, when the work gets heavy, Stewart finds joy in simple moments — like walking through Publix.
“That’s my happy place,” he said. “If I’m having a bad day, all I need to do is stop in there. The citizens make me feel happy.”
For Irondale’s mayor, leadership is personal, faith-driven and deeply human — a reflection of a man who believes the city’s best days are still ahead.
