Revelations that a candidate for Birmingham mayor was arrested twice in prostitution stings have made their way into the race.

Kamau Afrika, a longtime activist, pleaded guilty following his 2019 arrest in Shelby County for soliciting prostitution, a misdemeanor, when he was among dozens arrested during the operation.

Afrika paid a $250 fine.

sex Afrika was again arrested and charged in 2022 for promoting prostitution, a third degree misdemeanor in Homewood. Undercover Homewood police in that case posed as women advertising sex services on a website and later met Afrika at a nearby hotel.

Afrika’s Homewood case was dismissed the following year in Nov. 2023 after he completed community service.

Afrika told AL.com his arrests occurred during a time when he was dealing with personal medical challenges that he blamed for impairing his judgment.

“I said, ‘I guess I’m going to die anyway,’ and I walked into a trap,” he said. “I just wanted to feel comfort before I thought I was going to die.”

Afrika’s arrest record has recently surfaced leading up to the mayor’s election with social media posts detailing his criminal history and days after another candidate for public office in Birmingham was discovered to have recent criminal cases.

Justin Smith, a 23-year-old candidate for Birmingham City Council District 8 currently faces larceny charges in Boston.

Smith in May 2024 was accused of stealing nearly $50,000 in handbags and wallets from Saks Fifth Avenue, where he worked. The case is still pending.

Smith vowed to stay in the race.

Likewise, Afrika said his arrests have no bearing on his ability to lead Birmingham as mayor.

“My choice to seek comfort from a woman in no way takes away from my 40 years of volunteer community service record,” Afrika said. “I never said nor touted being a straight laced saint.”

While Afrika said he regrets making the wrong decisions, he noted that he was neither married nor in a relationship.

“I didn’t try to lay down with a child or a kid or a man or a boy, so I don’t apologize for being a man,” he said.

Afrika said his misdemeanor charges pale in comparison to more high-profile figures in the highest offices.

“I don’t have 34 felonies. I know there are three branches of government,” he said in a jab at President Donald Trump’s convictions and a gaffe from Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville – the odds on favorite for the next governor of the state – over naming the federal branches.

Birmingham city elections are Aug 26.