Two Democrats vie for Alabama House seat in Jefferson County

Democratic voters in Birmingham and Homewood will decide a nominee for the Alabama House of Representatives later this month after rejecting the local incumbent.

Gigi Hayes, an attorney, and LaTanya Millhouse, a family court judicial assistant, are running to represent Alabama House District 52. The district includes part of the Birmingham metro area and Homewood. According to the Alabama Secretary of State’s office, Hayes had 3,880 (48.87%) votes in unofficial returns in the May 19 Democratic primary and Millhouse had 2,096 (26.4%) votes in unofficial returns.

Rep. Kelvin Datcher, D-Birmingham, the incumbent, had 1,964 (24.74%) votes in unofficial returns. The winner of the runoff will become the presumptive representative; no Republican qualified for the race. 

Hayes said in a recent interview she believes her skillset could help with some of the legislation that gets passed.

“As a practicing attorney, often having to navigate the law, you see that even though some laws have good intentions, they can have negative or implications sometimes on certain people that live in the district,” she said.

Millhouse said “there was just no way I could not jump back in the race” after narrowly missing a runoff in a special election for the seat in 2024.

“I feel like there were really things that we need in our community in this District 52, and I said I was not running for the seat, I was running so we can have a seat at the table,” she said.

Hayes said one of her priorities is improving affordability.

“When you look at it, a person that makes less than $100,000 a year, they consume a great deal of their income,” she said. “A lot of it goes through to taxes and various things like that, because the person making less than $100,000 a year, they’re taxed on their earned income, there’s tax when they go to the grocery store, there’s tax on the gas, and you find that there’s less income that allows them to have a comfortable life and live a more a life that’s affordable and I mean sufficient for what some of the things that we’re experiencing in the economy today.”

Millhouse is also campaigning on affordability. She also wants to improve the district by getting rid of blighted properties.

“I also have half of Fairfield, which half of Fairfield itself is dilapidated, vacant, empty homes, and just like a church, if you don’t have any new, any children growing in the church, you’ve got a dying church. If you don’t have new homeowners growing in your community, you’ve got a dying community, and that’s kind of where we are right now,” she said

Hayes said voters should choose her because she understands the different demographics in the district, including the fluctuating population of college students in the area.

“When you look at it, you have people from Fairfield, Midfield, Central Park, West End, Ensley, West Homewood, Southside. I mean, I’ve got a ton of students on the UAB campus,” Hayes said. “It takes an intricate approach, because some of them are transient students. They’re just here for school, but you still have to consider that they are residents in the district.”

Millhouse said in a recent interview that voters should choose her because she’s not using the district as a stepping stone for other offices.

“District 52 is not a political opportunity for me, it’s my home. I live in District 52, I was raised in District 52. And so for me, I feel the same concerns that they have, and so I am looking at electing common people like us,” she said. “I am, just like my neighbor, I’m just like the person across the street. I am just like that mother that’s a single parent. I’ve been there, so electing me will be electing someone that’s going to listen to you, that’s going to show up.”

Meet the Candidates

GiGi Hayes

Age: 44

Residence: Homewood

Occupation: Attorney

Education: B.S. Business Management, University of Phoenix; Masters of Business Administration, University of Phoenix; J.D. Birmingham School of Law

Party: Democratic

Previous political experience: First-time candidate

Campaign fundraising: Raised $13,400 and spent $20,200 as of June 1

 

Latanya Millhouse

Age: 55

Residence: Titusville

Occupation: Fatherhood Initiative Programs Manager at Family Guidance Center of Alabama

Education: B.S. Business Management, Huntington College

Party: Democratic

Previous political experience: Ran for District 52 in 2022 and 2024

Campaign fundraising: No filings as of June 1