Hoover City Council certifies final 2016 election results

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The Hoover City Council today certified the results of the 2016 municipal election, officially declaring retired Hoover fire Marshal Frank Brocato as the winner of the three-person mayoral race.

According to official and certified results, Brocato received 7,132 votes, or 52 percent of the total, giving him enough to avoid a runoff with current Mayor Gary Ivey and Hoover City Schools Foundation President Steve McClinton.

Ivey received 4,829 votes, or 35 percent, while McClinton garnered 1,800 votes, or 13 percent.

After the results were certified and made official today, Brocato said he is excited to be Hoover’s mayor-elect and eager to be sworn in on Nov. 7.

The residents of Hoover have been incredibly nice about the election results, and he has started meeting with city department heads to establish a new working relationship with them, Brocato said. He already knew the department heads because of his previous role with the Fire Department, but the relationship will take on a different dynamic now that he will be mayor, he said.

“That’s going to be awkward for some people,” he said. “I just want them to feel comfortable with me.”

However, Brocato said “we still have a mayor that has until Nov. 7, and I’m honoring that position and not doing anything to be disruptive.”

The official results also confirmed other election winners as Gene Smith in Council Place 2, John Lyda in Council Place 3, Mike Shaw in Council Place 4, Derrick Murphy in Council Place 5, Casey Middlebrooks in Council Place 6 and John Greene in Council Place 7.

Curt Posey and Trey Lott will meet each other in an Oct. 4 runoff for Council Place 1. Joe Rives, the current councilman in Place 1, said today he will not endorse either candidate in the runoff.

The race for Council Place 6 was especially close. Unofficial election night returns showed Middlebrooks leading Jason DeLuca by only nine votes out of the 12,415  votes cast in that race. Today, after provisional ballots were counted (from people who had to have their voter eligibility confirmed), that lead dropped to just five votes.

City Clerk Margie Handley said there were 22 provisional ballots cast, and the boards of registrars in Jefferson and Shelby counties determined that six of those could legally be counted. Five of those voters chose DeLuca, while one chose Middlebrooks.

DeLuca has 48 hours from the time the votes were certified this morning to ask for a recount. A recount likely would cost about $3,800, City Clerk Margie Handley said. Candidates also have until Sept. 5 to contest the results of the election, according to the Alabama League of Municipalities.

The race for Council Place 2 also was very close. Election night totals showed Smith with a 28-vote lead over Sam Swiney, out of 12,370 votes cast. After the six provisional ballots were counted today, that lead changed to 24 votes.

Here are the complete official results, including the provisional ballots counted today:

Mayor

  • Winner: Frank Brocato – 7,132 votes, or 52 percent
  • Gary Ivey – 4,8296 votes, or 35 percent
  • Steve McClinton – 1,800 votes, or 13 percent

Council Place 1

  • Curt Posey – 5,256 votes, or 41.21 percent (runoff)
  • Trey Lott – 5,176 votes, or 40.59 percent (runoff)
  • Joe Rives – 2,321 votes, or 18.20 percent

Council Place 2

  • Winner: Gene Smith – 6,200 votes, or 50.10 percent
  • Sam Swiney – 6,176 votes, or 49.90 percent

Council Place 3

  • Winner: John Lyda – 9,973 votes, or 79 percent
  • Arnold Singer – 2,699 votes, or 21 percent

Council Place 4

  • Winner: Mike Shaw – 7,986 votes, or 66 percent
  • Michael Holt – 4,205 votes, or 34 percent

Council Place 5

  • Winner: Derrick Murphy – 8,679 votes, or 68 percent
  • Dan Ellis – 4,128 votes, or 32 percent

Council Place 6

  • Winner: Casey Middlebrooks – 6,213 votes, or 50.02 percent
  • Jason DeLuca – 6,208 votes, or 49.98 percent

Council Place 7

  • Winner: John Greene – 7,013 votes, or 58 percent
  • Robin Schultz – 5,070 votes, or 42 percent

See results from each polling place on the city of Hoover's website.

This story was updated at 5:10 p.m. to include the amount of time candidates have to ask for a recount and to include the link to the results from each polling place.