New city mayor and mayor pro tem appointed

By Grace Lovins

The start of the Monday, November 17, Birmingham City Commission meeting marked the beginning of a new term as two recently elected commissioners were sworn into their positions and the commission selected a new mayor and mayor pro tem.

Commissioners appoint a new mayor and mayor pro tem every November, typically sending the mayor pro tem from the previous year to the mayor position and selecting a new commissioner to serve as mayor pro tem.

During Monday night’s appointments, former mayor pro tem Clinton Baller was selected as the new mayor in a 6-1 vote. Commissioner Brad Host was the lone vote against Baller’s appointment, however he didn’t provide a comment to the commission regarding his reasoning.

The appointment of a mayor pro tem was a close vote between commissioners Andrew Haig and Anthony Long. In the end, Long was the chosen candidate with support from outgoing mayor Therese Longe and commissioners Baller, Kevin Kozlowski and Long himself.

Both Baller and Long stated they were honored to be selected for their new roles.“I’m very proud of the many accomplishments we have made here in this town and how we have evolved, and I’m looking forward to many more,” Baller said.

Prior to the mayor selection, two newly elected commissioners, Kevin Kozlowski and Bill Kolb, took their places at the commission table and outgoing commissioners Jason Emerine and Katie Schafer were recognized for their work in the city.

Schafer had served as a commissioner since being elected in 2021 and had previously served on the city’s multi-modal transportation board for years prior. Emerine, previously having served as an alternate member of the city’s planning board for several years, was appointed to the commission vacancy following commissioner Elaine McLain’s resignation in November 2024.