Qualifiers for state office elections are set, and several legislative districts will have contested races this year.
In District 39, which covers parts of Clay, Lowndes and Oktibbeha counties, Dana McLean will face incumbent Jeff Smith in the August Republican primary, according to a list of candidates the Mississippi Secretary of State’s Office released Friday evening after the qualifying deadline.
Smith chairs the House Ways and Means Committee. He also serves as the attorney for the Lowndes County School District and Columbus Light and Water.
He was first elected as a Democrat in 1992 and switched parties in 2011.
McLean, a Columbus-based real estate agent with Century 21 Doris Hardy and Associates agency, said she thinks it’s time for a change for her district in the Legislature.
“I’m excited about running and look forward to city and county leaders and the constituents of District 39 on how I can best represent our community in Jackson,” she wrote in a statement sent to The Dispatch. “Change is good. And I’d like to be the change that brings a fresh perspective to Jackson for our community.”
Smith declined to comment.
Taylor-Wynn rematch in District 38
Former Starkville alderman Lisa Wynn is again challenging District 38 Rep. Cheikh Taylor for his seat in the Mississippi House of Representatives.
Wynn, who formerly represented Ward 2 on the board from 2013-17, qualified to run as a Democrat against the incumbent representative. She unsuccessfully ran for the position in a 2017 special election after former Rep. Tyrone Ellis retired.
District 38 includes parts of Clay, Lowndes and Oktibbeha counties. Both candidates are from Starkville. Wynn and Taylor will meet in August’s Democratic primary election.
In an emailed statement, Wynn said she supports the state lottery, which legislators implemented last year. She said she was “appalled” that Taylor opposed it and claimed the district’s majority-black population supports the lottery.
“For the district representative not to support the lottery clearly indicates a lack of knowledge about the district and the district’s residents,” she said.
Taylor, however, noted that he voted against Senate Bill 2001 — which established the lottery — initially when it only included money for infrastructure. Once it was amended so that any proceeds above $80 million go to education, he voted for it.
Still, Taylor said he thinks the lottery is a tax on the state’s poor.
“The lottery is a self-tax,” he said. “The lottery resulted because of our inability and neglect to fund infrastructure. Who are the primary purchasers of lottery tickets? The lower and middle class. It’s a tax on the lower and middle classes to support what we gave away to big business with millions of dollars in tax cuts.”
Wynn said she was also concerned that District 38 didn’t receive any BP settlement money. She pointed out that District 43 did, for a county project to pave Longview Road.
Taylor said he’s looking forward to the campaign and for a chance to continue working in the Legislature. He pointed to some of his achievements, such as an amendment to 2018 legislation that allows those with substance abuse problems to get treatment through Medicaid.
He said he wants to continue efforts to work on criminal justice reform, including voting rights restoration for felons.
In District 42, which covers parts of Lowndes, Noxubee and Winston counties, Democrat Dirk Dickson is running against Democrat incumbent Carl Mickens.
Dickson, who served as a justice court judge in Noxubee County from 2000 to 2013, said he wants to address trade school and training opportunities in his district.
“We need to have more options for that kind of job training,” he said. “So I would definitely focus on that.”
Mickens did not respond to requests for comment.
Several incumbents — District 37 Rep. Gary Chism (R-Columbus) District 41 Rep. Kabir Karriem (D-Columbus) and District 43 Rep. Rob Roberson (R-Starkville) — are running unopposed.
Senate
In District 17, Democrat Dewanna Belton and Libertarian Danny Bedwell are running against incumbent Chuck Younger (R-Columbus).
The three-way race will be decided in November’s general election.
Younger is seeking his second full term. He first joined the Senate in 2014 when he won a special election to replace the late Sen. Terry Brown. A year later, he won his first re-election bid.
He said he was surprised to have two opponents.
“We’ll just have to dance and see who’s the last one standing,” Younger said. “I feel like I’ve done a decent job for my area, and most of all when constituents call me and need help I’ve tried to put them in the right position to get what they need. That’s what matters most to me — when I can help individuals and not big institutions. It means more to me when I can get somebody in touch with the right person in Jackson and I feel I can continue to do that.”
Belton, a New Hope High School and Mississippi University for Women graduate who lives in Columbus and works as a certified DUI instructor in Georgia, said she was inspired to run for office after watching Stacey Abrams run for governor during Georgia’s 2018 gubernatorial election. She plans to focus on women’s rights and job creation.
“I lived and worked in Georgia for about 15 years, and when I moved back home, I realized that there still weren’t that many job opportunities here,” she said. “And of course there’s issues like equal pay for women and healthcare for every Mississippi resident.”
Bedwell, the Libertarian Party of Lowndes County chairman, said he chose to run because he wants to provide fiscal oversight to the state.
“Somebody has to provide some kind of oversight and I don’t think who we have right now is doing that,” he said. “Every piece of legislation, I’m going to look at what this costs citizens of my district. I am not going to vote yes on anything that will cost the people money.”
District 15 Sen. Gary Jackson (R-French Camp) and District 16 Sen. Angela Turner-Ford (D-West Point) are running for re-election unopposed.
Scott Colom, Democrat from Columbus, is running unopposed for a second term as district attorney for the 16th Judicial District.
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