Mark your calendars. Set up an alarm on your phone. The Jackson city elections are Tuesday, June 3.
I need to make a correction from my column last week: Ward 1 candidate Grace Greene is not a Republican. She is an Independent. We corrected this before the press run, but somehow the wrong printing plate got put on the press. It was corrected online.
There is no Republican candidate for Ward 1. In the past, Independent candidate Ashby Foote has run as a Republican but he ran as an Independent this time to free up Ward 1 voters to vote in the Democratic primary. It was critical to marshal Ward 1 votes to oust incumbent mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba. It worked.
So now we have a rather interesting Ward 1 dynamic: two Independent candidates and one Democratic candidate. Because it’s a general election, there will be no runoff. Whoever gets the most votes wins. No need to get a majority of the votes, a plurality wins.
It’s great to see healthy competition for the Ward 1 city council seat with three good candidates.
Ashby is a personal friend so I can wholeheartedly endorse him. He has been a voice of reason on the council, serving as its president for many years. He has done a remarkable job of working well with diverse council members, learning the details about how the city works and moving the city in the right direction.
Ashby has been instrumental in feeding important stories to me and the Northside Sun. I can’t imagine where we would be without him on the council for the last 11 years.
Ashby’s going to have some competition both from Democrat Jasmine Barnes and Independent Grace Greene, both of whom have actively campaigned.
Barnes, being the Democratic nominee in a highly Democratic ward, has to be given due consideration. She is a Certified Public Accountant with a decade of audit experience as deputy director of audit at the Mississippi Department of Transportation. She got her accounting degree at Ole Miss.
Greene is plugged into the Northside as a wife, mother of four and lifelong Jackson resident. She and her husband Mason live in Heatherwood. Mason runs a family restaurant supply business. She’s run an aggressive campaign and is sure to get a substantial number of votes. She’s been a middle school teacher, a Belhaven adjunct professor, a childbirth class instructor and an online reseller.
In Ward 7, Ron Aldridge, an Independent, has a ton of qualifications. He’s a former state legislator. He has served on dozens of community boards. Currently he is a three-year chairman of the Fondren Business Improvement District. He has worked in workforce training for many years.
His main opponent, a Democrat, is the much younger Kevin Parkinson, a senior education manager at the Alliance for Decision Education and a former ward 7 middle school principal. Parkinson is smart and energetic.
This race could be described as the older, experienced Independent versus the up and coming Democrat. It’s going to be a close and interesting race.
Then there’s the mayor’s race, featuring Democratic nominee John Horhn versus Republican nominee Kenny Gee versus Independents Rodney Depriest, Zach Servis, Kim Wade and Lillie Stewart-Robinson
Most people view this as a two-man race between Horhn and Depriest with the conventional wisdom betting on an easy Horhn victory.
Depriest, to his credit, has been campaigning hard and got the verbal endorsement of fellow Independent candidate Kim Wade at the end of a panel discussion last week at the Briarwood Presbyterian Church.
Depriest has an impressive resume, running his own construction company for 20 years before becoming a senior banker at Trustmark. He is a deacon of the First Baptist Church and refers to his faith frequently on the campaign trail.
Kenneth Gee is the Republican candidate. He beat three other Republican candidates in the primary and won with 134 out of 355 votes. Jackson is a Democratic stronghold and a Gee victory would be an upset of epic proportions. Gee has worked in law enforcement over the years, including being a Hinds County deputy.
Servis is a 26-year-old Independent candidate who has campaigned actively. He describes himself as a music artist and business owner. He is energetic, religious and persuasive, but he’s definitely a long shot.
Stewart-Robinson, another independent, is also a long shot. She describes herself as a child development director, an ordained elder, senior pastor, computer operator, Girl and Boy Scouts leader and business leader who has lived in Jackson over 60 years.
Horhn is the presumptive favorite, having easily won the Democratic primary runoff, defeating incumbent mayor Lumumba 75 to 25 percent. He’s been in the state senate for over 30 years.
Horhn’s platform is 1. Reverse Population Loss and Grow Our City, 2. Unite Leadership and Bring Resources to Jackson, 3. Fix the Streets and Clean Up Abandoned Properties, 4. Support Our City Workforce and Retain Talent, 5. Catalyze Economic Development and Housing, 6. Build a Safe Environment for Families and Businesses, 7. Improve Public Education and Job Opportunities, 8. Repair Our Reputation and Move Our City Forward.
Depriest’s platform is 1. Safe City, 2. Infrastructure Restoration, 3. Job Creation and Training, 4. Beautification and Blight Elimination. 5. Home Ownership Opportunities.
Jackson needs a mayor who is honest and will work with the state leadership to build a state capital the entire state can be proud of. Let’s hope this crop of candidates produces such a mayor. It’s been a long time coming.
