Sen. Roger Bedford (D-Russellville) officially announced this month that he will seek reelection for Alabama Senate District 6, which includes portions of Marion, the northern portion of Lawrence, all of Franklin, all of Colbert and part of Lauderdale counties (including Southwest Florence and Waterloo).

Bedford’s main concern will continue to be job creation.

“While I am proud of the new jobs that have been created in our Senate District over the past years, I will continue to make recruiting better paying jobs for the people of Northwest Alabama my top priority,” he said.

In addition to job creation, Bedford remains an ardent supporter of public education in Alabama.

“As I always have, I will continue to support our schools, community colleges and universities to see that we graduate a well-trained 21^st century workforce,” Bedford said.

“In addition, I will remain to be a voice on behalf of the educators and support personnel who make up the backbone of our public education system.”

Bedford also recognizes the importance of the current and future projects that the Alabama Department of Transportation provides to Senate District 6.

“I have been pleased to see the current progress on replacing worn out bridges, creating safer highways, and the completion of four-laning Highway 24 in Senate District 6,” he said.

“In addition, I will continue to keep my focus on bringing new road, highway and bridge projects to our district.”

Born on July 2, 1956, Bedford received his education at the University of Alabama, and his law degree from Cumberland School of Law at Samford University. He is married to the former Maudie Darby of Florence, and they are the proud parents of one child: Roger, III.

He is an attorney, a conservative Democrat, a Baptist, a Rotarian, and belongs to the Alabama Bar Association, the Cattlemen’s Association, the NRA, Ducks Unlimited, American Cancer Society, executive member of the Boy Scouts of America, and the Tennessee Valley Council.

Bedford’s hard work in delivering grants and services for his Senate District has been recognized statewide. As a result, he has received numerous accolades including being named “Legislator of the Year” by the Fraternal Order of Police, Probate Judges Association, Alabama Resource Conservation & Development Councils, Alabama Nurses Association, Alabama State Employees Association and Alabama Association of Conservation Districts (AACD) and Discovering Alabama.

Local supporters of Bedford held a campaign kick-off in his honor at the A.W. Todd Centre on Dec. 19.