https://www.waaytv.com/content...emacy-572614901.html
On Sept. 30, the Alabama Democratic Party took to Facebook saying that Florence Mayor Steve Holt refused to condemn white supremacy.
The Alabama Democratic Party said, "If Steve Holt, Mayor of Florence, Alabama refuses to condemn the KKK and white supremacy, the statue on Court Street isn’t the only monument to white supremacy that needs to be removed, the Confederate relic serving as Florence’s mayor needs to be removed as well."
WAAY 31 reached out to Mayor Holt's office for a response to the Alabama Democratic Party's statement about him.
He said, “I’m not going to be drawn into an obvious political stunt. The people of Florence know me. The real question is why is the state Democrat Party suddenly trying to interject themselves into this campaign 5 days before the election. It’s obvious which candidate they are attacking and which candidate they are supporting.”
Holt is neck and neck with his opponent, Andy Betterton, in a run-off mayoral race, which will happen Oct. 6.
Currently, protesters are on the 17th straight week of protesting the removal of a Confederate monument on the grounds of the county courthouse in Downtown Florence. Holt previously stated he wanted the monument removed, but there is a debate on who exactly owns the monument, whether it be the city or the county commission.
City council members have not voted to remove the monument because they want the county commission to pass a resolution saying the city has the right to go onto county property and remove the monument. The county commission has refused to pass such a resolution. A 2017 Alabama law makes it illegal to remove monuments that have sat in one place for more than 60 years.