By james art MADISON COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — Two probate judge candidates, incumbent Republican Frank Barger and Libertarian Jeffrey Johnson, will appear on the ballot for Madison County voters Tuesday.
Probate Court hears cases related to inheritance, mental health, adoption and aging issues. The Madison County probate judge also oversees elections, including the management of election officials and polling places.
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“We will continue our work to ensure safe, transparent and safe elections for our community,” said current Madison County Judge Frank Barger.
Barger served one six-year term and began his career at the Heritage Office in 2011.
“What I try to do and what I try to make sure my staff does is we’re in a constant state of review and improvement,” Barger said. “There is something new that happens every day, a situation we face is new. We’re constantly looking at what we can do better, how we can serve the public better.”
During his tenure, Barger helped pioneer the use of polling stations to verify voters, reducing wait times on Election Day. He said he has worked to implement effective practices in several areas.
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“We’ve created an internal process that fast-tracks adoptions,” Barger said. “We treat them as a priority above anything else outside of an emergency.”
Barger has created a mental health program that works to keep those who have been involuntarily committed from needing that legal intervention again.
“We provide a continuum of care for these people who suffer from mental illness,” Barger said. “Showing them how to tap into resources, how they have the ability to manage their care. It’s a 150-day program and I’m extremely proud of it.”
Jeffrey Johnson has a background in software development.
“I just see a need for citizen legislators and judges and activists to just step up and step up and do their little bit and try to change something and leave the people’s government a little better than they found it,” Johnson said .
Johnson said he believes in making elections more transparent and would like to reduce the amount of technology used to count votes and return to a hand-counting system.
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“We did it by hand until the 1950s and we had the results every Tuesday night, so I don’t see why we can’t do it now,” Johnson said.
Johnson said he would like to address wait times at the heritage office by giving people specific estimates of how long they will be there.
“You have no idea if you’re five minutes away or 50 minutes away, and I’d like to redo that to give you an estimate of how long you’re going to have to wait,” Johnson said. “So you can come back later or stay if it’s going to be shot time.”
Johnson also has ideas for deregulating security, such as metal detectors, at the Madison County Service Center.
“I’d like to stop treating everybody like a criminal when they walk into public office or a probate judge’s office,” Johnson said. “The first thing you do is go through the metal detector, and if you’re like me and you’ve had a concealed carry permit from the state of Alabama for almost 40 years, well, you’re disarmed.”
Barger and Johnson will appear on the ballot Tuesday. To confirm your registration status, voting status, polling place or address, click here.
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