Warren Alvarez
As always, he’ll be a wild card. The outspoken Northsider may not have a following, but he has listeners, and he’ll again be a factor in debates.
Elaine Brown
She’s ready to move up and isn’t going to go along with anyone who thinks otherwise. A hard community worker, she has the power to run unopposed for an at-large seat which should transcend into votes for Council leadership.
Sharon Copeland
Beating an incumbent badly, as she did, gives her immediate respect and she’s from a wealthy, well-involved district. She’ll need to cool her jets, though, as she learns the way that the Council really works.
Michael Corrigan
Hard to read. He comes into office with a good track record of leadership (president of Riverside Avondale Preservation and his Rotary Club) but may get tangled up in trying to keep his far-ranging and diverse district happy.
Lad Daniels
He wields the power to do almost anything. He has the big manufacturer’s association behind him (he’s their director,) and he has a stunning majority of the Council ready to make him the next president — the vote could be 17-2, and maybe more. He may have the power to dictate the next 2-3 Council presidents, too. Daniels and Peyton should get along, too, with their common interests. Could he be mayor? Not likely; he’s 64, which would seem to preclude a run next time.
Daniel Davis
He comes with the power of the builders association (he’s their lobbyist) but the suspicion of others, who think he’ll only care about construction issues. He’s also young and many remember him from his days as a Council aide. He’ll have to prove himself to get anything done.
Reggie Fullwood
He continues to walk the line between the white power structure and the black community and so far has succeeded. He knows he’s too young — under 30 — and is smart enough to look to the day when his age will be a good factor. A bid for the mayor’s office in eight years is likely.
Art Graham
A bright newcomer from the beach who swept into office with a strong, well-organized campaign. He’ll be an interesting act to follow, a black Republican whose ties are to big business. The Council is just the start of a political career, and he’ll have to convince the Council that he’s there to govern, not to get exposure for future runs.
Jerry Holland
He gained respect during a solid term as the Council president. He’d like to run for mayor someday, but lacks a solid constituency and will have to convince the big-money boys that he isn’t a softie.
Kevin Hyde
The strongest new face, he walks into the chambers with support from the very top of the business and political communities. A savvy attorney with a squeaky-clean image, it’s not difficult to project him as the leading candidate for mayor in 2011.
Suzanne Jenkins
She’ll face the challenge of being so outnumbered that she can become irrelevant. If she goes through with her challenge to Daniels for Council president, it likely will produce an embarrassing defeat and the animosity of whatever big-money support she still has. But she’s good at tilting windmills, and she doesn’t mind being shunted aside.
Glorious Johnson
A wild card. She won an at-large seat as a poorly-financed Republican against a well-financed Democrat, and promptly griped at the GOP for not supporting her. She’s a true unknown . . . even down to her statements about past employment.
Mia Jones
This is a traditionally “black Democrat” seat but, even though Jones has both those attributes, she’s closely tied to the Chamber and to big businesses here.
Pat Lockett-Felder
She’s proud to be her own person, even though it’s often to her detriment. She speaks long and loudly for her causes but tends to get herself too far from the others. Like Jenkins, she won’t have a problem being heard, but she may have a difficult time getting something done.
Lake Ray
He’s putting his community connections to good use and is in the scramble for a leadership position. Even if he doesn’t move up, his influences will be felt, particularly in transportation — the JTA won’t have an easy ride through any committee he chairs.
Faye Rustin
A hard worker who seems to get little respect for her involvement. She aspires to higher things and seems to do all the right things, but she again could be out of the leadership loop.
Lynette Self
Another full-time business owner (Rose of Sharon Florist) and that leaves precious little time to get involved with internal politics. But she’s highly regarded by people in and out of City Hall and she’ll be on future political lists.
ART SHAD
Like Copeland, he’ll try to hit the floor running, and it will take some time before he gets over being snubbed by Daniels and the others in the power structure in favor of Jay Jabour, whom he beat by less than one percent Tuesday. He’s ambitious, and he’ll let everyone know that quickly.
Gwen Yates
Another indicator that the old “black” vote on the Council has scattered. She’s on the leadership team, she’s not going to follow a party line and she could be Council president within three years.
— Opinion by Fred Seely