MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama House Republicans on Thursday huddled for a meeting in Montgomery just two days after voters saw fit to expand their majority to 72 of the 105-member body.
The top order of business for the caucus was to elect their leadership for the next four years.
The assembled group voted to keep the same leadership team in place that had been at the helm during the previous quadrennium — House Speaker Mike Hubbard, House Majority Leader Micky Hammon and Speaker Pro Tem Victor Gaston.
Multiple sources inside the closed-door meeting said the vote for Hubbard was 59-8, with two members abstaining.
House GOP votes 59-8 for @SpeakerHubbard to remain Speaker. Two abstained. Victor Gaston Speaker Pro Tem Micky Hammon Maj. Ldr. #alpolitics
— Cliff Sims (@Cliff_Sims) November 6, 2014
Hubbard, who is facing a 23-count felony indictment, was said to have had very little trouble rounding up commitments going into the meeting, however, a group of roughly 10 members — many of them with direct ties to the Alabama Education Association (AEA) — did meet separately to discuss a potential strategy to oust the Speaker.
The full House of Representatives will still have to vote on the Speaker and Speaker Pro Tem during an organizational session that will take place in January, but it appears Hubbard and Gaston will have no trouble maintaining their positions. Hammon’s post as Majority Leader is not subject to a vote of the full body and goes into effect immediately.
We’ll continue to update this story as we gather more details.
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