James Perkins Jr. was elected mayor of Selma, Alabama first in 2000 and served through 2008. He is the first African-American to be elected mayor of historic Selma. In 2020, the citizens of Selma re-elected Perkins to serve as mayor.

Perkins is a native of Selma and product of the Selma City School System. He earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mathematics from Alabama A & M University and completed numerous graduate courses in the Master of Business Administration program at Auburn University at Montgomery. Perkins is a graduate of Leadership Birmingham, Leadership Selma, and Leadership Alabama.  

Perkins’ leadership is noteworthy and highly valued locally, nationally and internationally by his peers. The Alabama Conference of Black Mayors elected Perkins to serve as president during their 2022 annual meeting. During Perkins previous term as mayor, his peers elected him to serve as: 1) President of the National Conference of Black Mayors, a national organization representing over 650 African American Mayors across the United States; 2) Director on the National League of Cities Board, a national organization representing cities and towns across the nation in Washington DC; and 3) Vice President for Trade of the World Conference of Mayors., an international organization collaborating with mayors in Caribbean and Africa. His accomplishments and awards are numerous and he is sought after to speak on a broad range of political, social, and faith-based issues.

People who really know Perkins describes him as a “prayerful, passionate, persistent, and practical man who truly cares about people; a no non-sense guy who is about solving problems.”                

James Perkins, Jr. speaks of his accomplishments by saying, “For all successes, accolades, and advancements, I say, ’To God be the Glory.’  My daily goals are to put God first and just treat people right.  This is who I am and this is how I try to live my life.”