Robert Avery says he stepped aside for Worthy and helped recruit council candidates

GADSDEN, AL – Former Gadsden City Councilman Robert Avery says he left the 2026 mayor’s race so Thomas Worthy could face Mayor Craig Ford one on one, and that he worked to recruit City Council candidates in four districts. Avery made the comments in a Facebook video posted this week, less than two weeks before the Aug. 25 municipal election.

Avery said he plans to post more videos between now and Election Day. He also said he had wanted to start sooner but was delayed after his older brother died on Sunday.

What did Robert Avery say about the mayor’s race?

Avery said he had planned to run for mayor and was not going to let health issues stop him. He said he went to City Hall late on the last day of qualifying and learned someone else had filed.

He said he then talked it over with others and decided the race should be a head to head contest against the incumbent.

“I didn’t think two of us need to run,” Avery said. “It needs to be a one-on-one.”

Avery said he concluded it would be better for Worthy to carry that fight. He said Worthy is “still in the race and looking good.”

Does the public record match Avery’s account?

Partly. The record confirms the timing Avery describes, and it also shows he filed anyway.

The Gadsden city clerk’s office provided the qualifying record to GadsdenThrive on Thursday. Qualifying opened June 9 and closed at 5 p.m. June 23.

Ford qualified first, on June 9 at 10:35 a.m., the opening day.

Worthy qualified on the final day, June 23, at 2:54 p.m.

Avery qualified that same afternoon at 4:43 p.m. That is one hour and 49 minutes after Worthy, and 17 minutes before the window closed.

So the part of Avery’s account about arriving late on the last day and finding someone else had already filed matches the record. What the video does not say is that he then filed himself.

Avery submitted a written statement of withdrawal on July 10, 17 days later. The clerk’s office said no reason for the withdrawal is given on the statement. Avery told the Anniston Star at the time that he was dealing with medical issues and did not think two candidates needed to run against the mayor.

Because he withdrew before ballots were printed, his name does not appear on any ballot. Under Alabama law, Section 11-46-25(j), a candidate may withdraw by giving written notice to the mayor at any time before the election. If paper ballots are already printed, election officials draw a line through the name. If electronic tabulators are used, the name is removed from the ballot.

The city’s published candidate list shows the word “Withdrew” beside Avery’s name.

The clerk’s office said the qualifying forms themselves are available through a public records request. Each form notes the time of filing and carries the candidate’s notarized signature.

Which council races did Avery say he targeted?

Avery said he was, in his words, “very instrumental” in making sure there were candidates running in certain council districts. He named District 1, District 3, District 5 and District 6.

He said the goal was to build enough support to elect the city’s first Black mayor, or, as he put it, “whoever would be running against the incumbent at this point in time.”

Gadsden has never elected a Black mayor. Worthy, who served two terms on the City Council representing District 3, is Black.

All four districts Avery named are contested this year. District 1 has four candidates. District 5 has four. District 3 has two. District 6 has two.

Avery did not name any individual candidate, and GadsdenThrive is not attributing any candidate’s decision to run to him.

GadsdenThrive sent written questions to Worthy on Aug. 12 asking whether Avery speaks for his campaign, whether the two discussed the withdrawal beforehand, and whether the campaign is connected to that recruiting effort.

What else did Avery raise in the video?

Most of the video is a criticism of how city money has been spent since 2022. Avery questioned the use of federal relief funds the city received at the end of the previous administration, and he argued that money and bond funds could have been used to repair homes in older neighborhoods instead.

He also said investment has been concentrated in and near downtown, while areas such as Tuscaloosa Avenue, Walnut Park, South Gadsden, the east side and the Oakleigh area saw little until recently. He said the recent work in those areas is timed to the election.

Avery made specific claims about dollar figures and about a downtown redevelopment incentive. GadsdenThrive is checking those figures against city records and contacted Ford’s campaign on Aug. 12 seeking a response and a direct contact for the mayor’s office. Because those claims involve public money and a private business, this story does not repeat the numbers until they are verified. That reporting will run separately.

What Avery said about council meetings

Avery closed with a point about how City Council meetings are run. He said that when he took office in 1986, the mayor sat in the audience rather than with the council.

“It’s not the mayor’s meeting, it’s the council meeting,” Avery said. He said the city would be better off returning to that practice.

Avery was elected in 1986 as an original member of the current Gadsden City Council and served four terms representing District 3. He ran for mayor in 2022 and finished third.

Frequently asked questions

Is Robert Avery running for mayor in 2026?

No. He qualified on June 23 and withdrew in writing on July 10. His name does not appear on any ballot.

When did each candidate qualify?

Ford on June 9 at 10:35 a.m., Worthy on June 23 at 2:54 p.m., and Avery on June 23 at 4:43 p.m. Qualifying closed at 5 p.m. that day.

Who is on the ballot for Gadsden mayor?

Craig Ford, the incumbent, and Thomas Worthy, a former District 3 city councilman.

When is the Gadsden municipal election?

Tuesday, Aug. 25. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. The races are nonpartisan and write-in votes are not allowed.

What happens if no one wins a majority?

A runoff would be held Sept. 22. The new administration takes office Nov. 2.

Have Ford or Worthy responded to Avery’s video?

Not yet. GadsdenThrive sent questions to Worthy and contacted Ford’s campaign on Aug. 12. Neither had responded when this story was published. It will be updated when they do.

More GadsdenThrive election coverage

• Gadsden 2026 voter’s guide: candidates, polling places and deadlines
• Where to vote in Gadsden on Aug. 25: all 16 polling places
• Gadsden voters to choose mayor, council and school board on Aug. 25
• Monday is the deadline to register to vote in Gadsden’s Aug. 25 election

Qualifying dates, times and withdrawal details provided by the Gadsden city clerk’s office on Aug. 13, 2026. Quotations from Avery are taken from an unofficial GadsdenThrive transcript of his public Facebook video.