Lyon, a Pelham attorney and perennial candidate for one office or another, has run under the banners of both major parties. This time, he decided to be a Democrat and challenge former Chief Justice Roy Moore.
No other Democrats came forth to qualify. So Lyon, who has been disciplined three times by the Alabama State Bar, became the nominee.
The Democratic establishment was not happy. Even the forever-loyal AFL/CIO bolted and endorsed Moore. Lyon was a Democratic disaster waiting to happen.
If these weren’t reasons enough for traditional Democrats to distance themselves from Lyon, the candidate began to ramble off into the irrational — claiming that his opponent suffers from dementia and that Moore’s efforts to display a Ten Commandments monument was akin to idol-worshiping. His references to homosexuals as “freaks” and suggestion that killing a few illegal immigrants would frighten away the others only confirmed what party leaders believed — Lyon had to go.
So he went.
Last week, a five-member party committee voted unanimously to revoke Lyon’s nomination for violating party rules and for behavior that made him unfit for the office.
Lyon’s removal forced the Democrats to search for a new nominee. They received one Monday when Birmingham attorney Robert Vance Jr. entered the election. He became the nominee because no other Democrat filed the necessary papers by noon Wednesday.
Anticipating someone they feel would be acceptable, the AFL/CIO has withdrawn its endorsement of Moore and is expected to endorse Lyon’s replacement.
Meanwhile, it is doubtful the Democrats have heard the last of Harry Lyon. When the committee decision was handed down, the ex-candidate announced he would sue the party to recover the $3,220 qualifying fee.
One wonders if he will represent himself in the suit as he represented himself at the committee hearing. He went there alone, he told the committee, because he had asked the Alabama GOP to hire an attorney for him and the Republicans refused. One wonders if he will ask the GOP for help again.
Not that the Republican Party would want to get involved in this mess. Better to sit on the sidelines and watch the Democrats in disarray.
