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Mayoral Candidates Square Off

Eight candidates and one campaign manager took the stage in the first mayoral forum of the 2013 election season Saturday.

Eight candidates and one campaign manager took the stage in the first mayoral forum of the 2013 election season Saturday. Photo by Jacob Fuller.

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Chokwe Lumumba

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Cornelius Griggs

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Francis P. Smith Jr.

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Gwendolyn Ward Osborne Chapman

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John H. Jones Jr.

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Jonathan Lee

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Mayoral candidate Regina Quinn did not file campaign-finance reports by the January deadline. Her campaign says she will file this week.

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William Bright

The People's Assembly Task Force hosted eight candidates for mayor of Jackson Saturday in the first public forum of the 2013 election season.

Six Democratic candidates, all of whom will be on the party's primary ballot May 7, and two independents, who will take on the Democratic candidate June 4, answered questions from forum organizers and from the crowd on infrastructure, crime and what makes them the best candidate.

On the Democratic side, William Bright, Gwendolyn Ward Osborne Chapman, John H. Jones Jr., Regina Quinn, Chokwe Lumumba and Jonathan Lee were in attendance. Incumbent Harvey Johnson Jr. sent his campaign manager as a proxy. Candidates Frank Bluntson, Audrey Nichols, Robert Amos and Charles Taylor Sr. did not attend.

Cornelius Griggs and Francis Smith Jr. were the independent candidates.

A crowd of between 100 and 200 citizens and supporters attended the forum at Word and Worship Church on Hanging Moss Road. Many wore T-shirts supporting specific mayoral or city council candidates.

The Hinds County Democratic Executive Committee will host a mayoral forum Monday, March 25, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at Greater Mount Bethel Church at 4125 Robinson Road, across from Metrocenter Mall.

Comments

TAHOE_2001 11 years ago

I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT THE CANIDATE FOR MAYOR PLAN TO DO ABOUT THE CITY OF JACKSON BECOMING A LOST CITY ALL THE BIG BUSINESSES OF JACKSON ARE GOING TO THE SURROUNDING CITY LIKE MADISON AND PEARL WE ARE LOSING THESE PLACES AND THE BUILDINGS ARE BEING ABANDON WE ARE THE CAPITAL CITY BUT WE DONT LOOK LIKE IT. EVERY THING WE TRIED DOES NOT WORK LIKE TO MAKE THIS CITY LOOK LIKE A CITY GOES UP A WILD HOGS ASS, LOOK AT THE DOWNTOWN PROJECT IT NOT FINSHED ITS BEEN IN THE MAKINGS FOR YEARS AND ITS STILL NOT DONE, WE JUST LOST THE SAMS CLUB TO MADISON. THE WAY IT SEEMS OUR SURROUNDING CITIES ARE MAKING AN ASS OUT OF OUR CAPITAL OR IS IT THAT MADISON AND OTHER CITY IN THE JACKSON AREA TRING TO SEPARATE THEM SELVES FROM US.

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Toomuch 11 years ago

When will there be another event? The mayoral candidates need to go all over the city as a group campaigning. Folk need to know who they are.

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robbier 11 years ago

Tahoe, turn your caps lock off.

And Todd says we shouldn't care about businesses leaving Jackson because, like him, we shouldn't shop at Sam's. Despite ~24% of the city living below the poverty line, inexpensive food shouldn't be an option. If you don't consume like he consumes, you're wrong. Got it?

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darryl 11 years ago

I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHEN GRAMMAR AND SYNTAX AND PUNCTUATION BECOMES NECESSARY TO FUNCTION IN THIS WORLD! I MEAN, WHY DID I SPEND ALL OF THAT TIME IN SCHOOL LEARNING THIS STUFF IF YOU REALLY DON'T HAVE TO USE IT? CAN I FORGET ALL OF THE ALGEBRA AND MATH, TOO? Oh, my bad. Caps Lock got stuck. Oopsy!

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donnaladd 11 years ago

Darryl, "becomes" should be "become" in that sentence, being that you're keeping score.

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donnaladd 11 years ago

Or, technically, "became."

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hotrodrobert 11 years ago

   What Tahoe hit on and no one here likes to admit is that a conservative political and business model works and the liberal model fails constantly;it is happening in Atlanta now to the point where the city of Atlanta is suing the surrounding cities for their flight and forming satellite cities with successful vibrant economies. Chicago and Detroit are other startling examples of a liberal and entitlement heavy political base model that leaves the populace in crime and unemployment that becomes systemic as it becomes the way business is done.Examples are all around us here but we are committed to a cycle of failure that will continue until we change what we have done and will do for the foreseeable future.The people running for Mayor are not bad people but if they talked a conservative line to the Jackson voting base they would have no chance of winning any elections here and if you don't win you have zero input.It is a recurring example played out over and over in liberal cities all over the country and financial collapse is it's only cure.Oh yea let the vitriol begin,it's not a popular position.
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darryl 11 years ago

Hot Rod,

What Tahoe hit on took several readings to discern. There was some pretty creative, virtual punctuating on my part, not to mention trying to figure out where a wild hog's ass came into being. I gather that were Tahoe faced with the choice between a pro-business, fiscal conservative and another tax-and-spend Democrat, the Democrat would get the vote every time. While you and I may agree that engendering an atmosphere of capitalism and pro-business practices would be the surest way to stem the efflux of tax monies from Jackson, clearly the majority of its inhabitants do not. They keep on electing the same old, tired people who are just trying to get paid and take care of their own.

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Knowledge06 11 years ago

darryl,

Who is getting paid and taking care of their own? I won't comment about the rest of what you said I'll just toss it into the heap with tahoe and hot rod's comments. Nonetheless, this inquiring mind wants to know!

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donnaladd 11 years ago

Robbie, I assume you didn't do any homework before snarking about Todd, Sam's Club, etc. Study after study is showing that warehouse stores end up costing people more and have a worse selection than most regular grocery stores. And people tend to buy huge unhealthy bags of snacks and such, thus making it easier to eat poorly. Which, of course, in turn increases their risk of health problems. And if they're the poor ones you pretend to be concerned about here, much of those health care costs will end up being paid by taxpayers.

Obviously, you're not listening to a word that Todd, I or various others are saying. You're just listening to refute. But the problem is that you're wrong on this one.

Let me guess: You're also in favor of payday lending because poor folks need money to pay their rent, right? I'm guessing you'd apply the same logic to that issue.

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donnaladd 11 years ago

And Darryl, I'd also like to know what "take care of their own" means, too. That sounds like some not-so-veiled racism, but feel free to explain it and convince us that you're not going down that ugly road. Because, if so, you're going to need to get the hell off this site.

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justjess 11 years ago

We still don't get it: The only way to keep businesses in Jackson is fo the residents of this City to STOP following those who leave. I said in an earlier blog that the only business that could survive in Madison or Rankin County is a Tanning Tub Business. Our citizens are the patrons who account for the big buck spending in these areas. We should SHOP JACKSON. If it isn't in Jackson, we probably don't need it anyway. When we take our dollars to other towns, we are taking away the funds needed for streets, teachers, school repairs/upgrades, fire department, police Department and other City services. In spite of the businesses that left, there are many that have come and for sure, MANY THAT HAVE STAYED.

STOP DOGGING JACKSON: There are many great things happening here. We are among the few Capital cities in the entire country that are not on the verge of bankrupcy or like Detroit - being taken over by a City Manager.

Jackson has not pink-slipped a single fire-fighter, policeman/woman or any of our city workers. In spite of the shape of the financial picture that this Administration inherited from the Melton Administration, we have been able to have excellent stewardship over the people's money through the leadership of Mayor Johnson.

It seems as if there are citizens who have not stayed connected with what is going on in the City of Jackson. My challenge to you is to visit the City's website:

www.jacksonms.gov

Access information on services offered. You can also subscribe to the Mayor's Facebook or Twitter feeds by clicking on the icons. We MUST STOP the RHETORIC and look at the Mayor's RECORD.

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Knowledge06 11 years ago

Great post justjess! By the way darryl, do you actually live in Jackson? The reason I ask is that it becomes pointless to respond to folk who don't live here but feel the need to constantly berate certain officials and speculate on things they know nothing about.

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robbier 11 years ago

Knowledge06, if you don't live in Jackson then what you say (re: Hinds/Jackson and the leadership or lackthereof) immediately becomes speculation?

Cool. Didn't know that.

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Knowledge06 11 years ago

robbier, glad to be of service. See reply to darryl!!

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darryl 11 years ago

For what it's worth, my "take care of their own" comment was a sideswipe at the Hinds BOS and their penchant for no-bid contracts for "professional services." A volley at the Jackson City Council and Mayor's office for their inability to manage monies/grants and work together. The fact that a Stokes sits on both is probably not lost on many, not that they're the cause. Simply an opportunist at the trough.

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darryl 11 years ago

Knowledge06, I do not live in Jackson. I was born in Jackson and graduated from JPS. Left for college but came back for medical school. Left for the Navy and came back to finish my training. Moved out of Jackson FOR GOOD in 1999. But I work in Jackson. I traverse Jackson's roads and, when I can't find something in my county I may even wind up purchasing it in Jackson. Now, do I have the credentials to speak out on Jackson or don't I? Like robbier suggests, only people who live in Jackson can speak on Jackson? Bulls***. You don't like what I got to say? Guess what, only you care.

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Knowledge06 11 years ago

darryl, it simply means that your opinion doesn't matter. You probably don't know what's going on in your own little town but you sure can tell us in Jackson how much you really don't know. I know from now on to ignore your posts about Jackson because you aren't part of the solution you're only part of the problem!!

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darryl 11 years ago

Knowledge06, it's the attitude that you and others have that if you don't live in Jackson you're automatically part of the problem and not the solution that dooms small-minded folk like you. Listen closely, I want Jackson to thrive. I want Jackson to grow. I want JPS to improve the education of Jackson's children. I want more Jacksonians to have jobs and be less dependent on the largesse of government entitlements. I want Jackson's infrastructure to be rebuilt. I would hope that all suburbanites want this for Jackson. But your government has failed you. Your civic leaders have failed you. Until y'all correct these ills and become more taxpayer- and business-friendly, you're gonna see more and more people become not part of your solution.

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