Bryan Brinyark (born 1968) is an American attorney, judge, and politician who serves in the

Alabama House of Representatives The Alabama State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of state of Alabama. The House is composed of 105 members representing an equal number of districts, with each constituency contai ...

, representing its 16th district since 2024. A member of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

, his district includes all of Fayette County, as well as parts of

Tuscaloosa Tuscaloosa ( ) is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west-central Alabama, United States, on the Black Warrior River where the Gulf Coastal and Piedmont plains meet. Alabama's fifth-largest city, it had an estimated population of 1 ...

and

Jefferson Jefferson may refer to: Names * Jefferson (surname) * Jefferson (given name) People * Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States * Jefferson (footballer, born 1970), full name Jefferson Tomaz de Souza, Brazilian foo ...

in the western part of the state.

Education and early career

A native of

Tuscaloosa, Alabama Tuscaloosa ( ) is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west-central Alabama, United States, on the Black Warrior River where the Gulf Coastal and Piedmont plains meet. Alabama's fifth-largest city, it had an estimated population of 1 ...

, Brinyark graduated from Central High School and went on to attend the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...

, where he attained a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in advertising in 1990, before receiving a J.D. from the

University of Alabama School of Law The University of Alabama School of Law, (formerly known as the Hugh F. Culverhouse Jr. School of Law at The University of Alabama) located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama is a nationally ranked top-tier law school and the only public law school in the sta ...

in 1993. Entering law practice, Brinyark specialized in business, estate and divorce law. Brinyark served as a municipal judge in Brent and

Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. ...

before becoming the municipal judge of Centreville in 2005. Brinyark also served as a judge for the city of Tuscaloosa, where he presided over cases such as a

solicitation Solicitation is the act of offering, or attempting to purchase, goods and/or services. Legal status may be specific to the time or place where it occurs. The crime of "solicitation to commit a crime" occurs when a person encourages, "solicits, r ...

charge against Tuscaloosa city councilor James Cunningham, of which Cunningham was found guilty. In 2014, Brinyark founded the law firm Brinyark & Frederick, which focuses on divorce law, in Northport. Brinyark also chaired the Board of Tuscaloosa Shoot Sports Inc. and was the baseball president of Northside Park in Tuscaloosa.

Alabama House of Representatives

Following the resignation of

Kyle South Stephen Kyle South (born August 29, 1981) is an American politician who served in the Alabama House of Representatives from 2015 to 2023, representing its 16th district. In April 2023, South was selected as president and CEO of the Chamber of Co ...

in 2023, the seat for the

's 16th district became open, and a special election was held. A first-time candidate for the

, Brinyark qualified to run for the seat in July 2023. Brinyark's main opponent was Fayette County commissioner Brad Cox, against whom he advanced to a runoff election in the Republican primary. Brinyark received the endorsement of the Business Council of Alabama, while Cox had been endorsed by the

Alabama Education Association The Alabama Education Association (AEA) is a statewide professional organization that represents public school employees in the state of Alabama. It is based in the state capital of Montgomery. The AEA is the largest education association in Ala ...

. Cox won the first round of voting in September 2023 by 15 votes, but Brinyark defeated Cox with 52% of the runoff vote in October 2023. Brinyark advanced to the general election in January 2024 against Democratic nominee John Underwood, another member of the Fayette County commission. Prior to the general election, Brinyark also received the endorsement of the Alabama Farmers Federation. Brinyark won the special election in a landslide with 83% of the vote to Underwood's 17%. Following his election, Brinyark said his priorities would include the expansion of Highway 43, among other infrastructure projects. Brinyark is also an advocate of

school choice School choice is a term for education options that allow students and families to select alternatives to public schools. The most common in the United States, by both the number of programs and by the number of participating students are scho ...

, and said he would support programs such as

school voucher A school voucher, also called an education voucher in a voucher system, is a certificate of government funding for students at schools chosen by themselves or their parents. Funding is usually for a particular year, term, or semester. In some cou ...

Personal life

Brinyark resides in

Windham Springs, Alabama Windham Springs, also known as Oregonia, Wyndham Springs, or Windhams Springs, is an unincorporated community in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, United States. Windham Springs is named after the resort at the sulfur springs founded by Levi Windham in 1 ...

, where he has run a small farm since the 2000s, and is the father of five adult children. He attends the Northport Church of Christ.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brinyark, Bryan 1968 births Living people Republican Party members of the Alabama House of Representatives 21st-century American legislators 21st-century Alabama politicians