By Gary Lloyd
TRUSSVILLE — Danny Garrett earlier this week won the Republican primary race for the State House District 44 seat.
When all 10 voting precincts reported, the final results were Garrett with 3,502 votes, John Amari with 2,447 and Joe Freeman with 725. All three men are from Trussville. District 44 covers Clay, Pinson and Trussville.
“I’m overwhelmed,” Garrett said. “I really appreciate all the support of the voters and residents of District 44.”
Garrett thanked those who helped with his campaign.
“I’m just very happy with the results and I’m looking forward to serving the district,” he said.
Garrett said he hopes to help bring jobs and industry to Alabama, improve the education and general funds, meet with and help the municipalities in District 44 and get people to work together. He said his whole career has been about getting people to work together. He spent the bulk of his career in the steel, rail and bus manufacturing industries. During his more than 30 years as a businessman, he’s served as chief financial officer for two public corporations and for a family-owned business. He has also served as a senior executive with a company owned by a major U.S. private equity firm.
“I’d like to just do the same thing in Montgomery and just solve some problems,” Garrett said.
Once Garrett takes office after the general election in November, he will have to vacate his vice president seat on the Trussville City Board of Education, he said. He will remain on the board until he takes office, he said.
Garrett said his cell phone number is 205-410-4637 for anyone in the district who wants to call him with their concerns or questions.
Garrett congratulated Amari and Freeman on their campaigns. He called them “very strong competitors.”
Amari, who called late last Tuesday night to concede the race, said he supports Garrett. He said he wants to make sure all communities in the district are strong.
“The reason I ran is because I love these communities,” Amari said.
Amari said on his campaign Facebook page that he was “at peace because I know we worked as hard as we possibly could and we left it all on the field.”
Freeman thanked voters for the support on his campaign Facebook page.
“We knew we would be significantly outspent and have to overcome a huge block of voters,” he said. “We opened a lot of eyes to issues facing the State and the district. This is not finished. We will continue to fight for real issues.”
Contact Gary Lloyd at news@trussvilletribune.com and follow him on Twitter @GaryALloyd.