Leeds — Irondale Mayor Tommy Joe Alexander and Leeds businessman Dickie Drake face off today for the House District 45 Republican nomination during a runoff election.

During the Aug. 30 Republican primary,  Alexander garnered 40 percent of the vote districtwide, while Drake earned 35 percent. Contender Michael Sumners received 24 percent of the vote, which removed him from the race.

Now, Drake and Alexander will vie for the right to challenge Democratic candidate Paige Parnell of Leeds.

The brother of the late Rep. Owen Drake, Dickie Drake hopes to follow in his brother’s footsteps in serving his state and community as the District 45 Representative  in the Alabama Statehouse.

Drake has lived in Leeds for 62 years, and currently operates Drake Lawn Maintenance, LLC, which is based out of Leeds. Prior to that, he spent 42 years in the Air National Guard/ U.S. Air Force.

Drake considers himself a fiscal conservative who will protect tax dollars generated by Alabamians while putting a stop to uncontrolled spending.

“We don’t have a problem of too few taxes. We have a problem of too much spending,” Drake said. “Government should focus on basic duties without interfering with businesses or individuals. I don’t and won’t support any new taxes.”

He also supports protecting states rights and expanding economic growth by taking care of local businesses.

His opponent, Tommy Joe Alexander, currently serves as the mayor of Irondale, where he aidedbusiness recruitment, resulting in 300 additional jobs in the past year, as well as a reining in of the city’s finances

“When I came into office in Irondale in 2004, we didn’t know if we’d be able to pay our bills or not. Thirty-five people had been laid off, and in the next year (after he took office) we hired everyone back, we’ve been paying our bills, and this past year we took $1 million out of our budgets,” Alexander said.

A Leeds High School graduate, Alexander worked as a Birmingham police sergeant, as well as a member of the SWAT and bomb squad for 14 years. He also served as the operations manager for the Jefferson Warrior Railroad for 10 years.

Alexander supports limited government, lower taxes and less spending, and holding the government accountable.