It would not be a Shelby County election without false-flag charges being hurled by one candidate against another, or in one late-breaking case, with a non-candidate doing the accusing.
Thomas Long
Here, not only in the 11th hour but in the 59th minute, metaphorically, is an excerpt from an election-eve Facebook post by Javier Bailey concerning former City Court clerk Thomas Long, now running for General Sessions Court clerk with 12 other Democrats in Tuesday’s party primary.
Said Bailey:
“…Thomas Long is now and has always been a Republican. He supported most of the Republican ticket in 2018, 2016, and prior thereto. He is now running as a Democrat . This is an infiltration of the Democratic Party ranks and he is a Republican plant. I have no idea why the party is
Jay Bailey
not acting to remove him from the ballot. I spent close to 30 years either on the State or County Democratic Party Executive Committees. I always stood up and spoke out against candidates running as Democrats but voting as Republicans. Two years ago I led the charge against Reginald Tate for the very same reasons. So here we go again. Thomas Long should be removed and replaced as the nominee if he wins.”
At the moment, Bailey has no official party connection, but he is a former chairman of the Shelby County Democratic Party’s primary board and also served on the state Democratic executive committee. To buttress his charges against Long, he cited a 2018 sample ballot that Long co-sponsored with Sidney Chism, which includes a mixed assortment of Democrats and Republicans, two of the latter being the GOP’s candidates for Sheriff and County Mayor, Dale Lane and David Lenoir, respectively. Lane would lose to Democrat Floyd Bonner Jr., and Lenoir was defeated by Democrat Lee Harris.
Long reacted energetically to Bailey’s charge, calling it “dirty politics” and claiming that his voting record in favor of Democratic candidates was perfect. He said that, after Bailey’s Facebook post appeared on Monday, he received supportive telephone calls from other candidates on the lengthy Democratic primary list for the clerk’s position.
In a later Facebook post, Bailey would endorse another candidate for General Sessions clerk, County Commissioner Reginald Milton, who has received numerous endorsements from other Democrats and, like Long, is one of the favorites in the race.