Steve Holt
FLORENCE – Steve Holt spent the last 20-years-plus as President of the Shoals Chamber of Commerce. After a stellar career at the Chamber, he left the post earlier this year to begin what a lot of Shoals people thought was a well deserved retirement.
Not so fast.
Last night when the runoff election results were tallied, Holt was named the winner in the race for Mayor of the City. First-term incumbent, career politician Mickey Haddock lost to Holt by 8 percentage points – A big spread for what was generally thought to be a tight race. Holt’s campaign slogan was, “Jobs – Not Politics”. His message that Florence would be better off with an administration that focuses on good business practices and spends less time on bureaucratic issues. Holt also focused his attention to the Florence/Lauderdale Animal shelter and the need to enhance and improve the had work that is being done there. Evidently his message resonated at the polls.
The final vote count was: Holt – 2,788 votes. Haddock – 2,384 votes. That’s 54-to-46 percent, Holt over Haddock.
