Jackson mayoral candidate forums expose differences and raise concerns

The first of two forums was at Jackson State University and was televised on WJTV in Jackson. That forum attracted 13 of the 19 candidates and ran for two hours. Because there were 13 candidates, it limited the amount of time for more than cursory responses. Nevertheless, they proceeded to respond to six questions or areas of concern, starting with crime and safety. 

As they waded into the matter of crime and safety, we could not help but think that is a concern that would solicit fairly patented responses, if for no other reason than everybody is opposed to crime. Beyond that, we noted five responses that were in some way or the other unique. David Archie let it be known that he would rely greatly on state resources and that his plan would require no additional funds. Socrates Garrett suggested that poverty was the main cause for crime and must be dealt with. Delano Funches emphasized establishing relationships with youths in order to reduce crime. Chokwe Lumumba was the first one to state that while crime remains a problem, it has declined and that it was in part because of improved technology and the pay raise that has been provided. Marcus Wallace emphasized stricter gun laws and more attention to rehabilitation. Most other candidates focused on increased manpower and studying the problem. 

Nobody wanted to ignore crime. It is the boogey-man for white people who do not want to be near Black people. It is strange, though not unusual, that none of the candidates nor citizens mentioned “white collar” crime.

Moving from crime and safety, they attacked the problem of streets and the infrastructure. Of course, most of them bemoaned the situation. Five comments that seemed noteworthy because they were unusual were those made by (1) Socrates Garrett, who indicated that he would require contractors to warranty their work – many of us assumed that this was already being done; (2) James Hopkins, who advanced the idea of developing a full public works department, with a competent director of public works; (3) Zach Servis, who stated that he would use concrete rather than asphalt for repairs; (4) Marcus Wallace, who emphasized routine maintenance as a means of keeping up with or ahead of the problem; and (5) Kim Wade, who felt that ads on the Jatran buses could bring in much needed revenue. One is left to wonder, if anybody believes in or supports a comprehensive study for the streets, water, and sewage.

A third set of concerns, which was expressed as a JSU matter, but which was of city-wide concern, had to do with billing for and accessibility to clean water. Both James Hopkins and Delano Funches brought up the fact that the problem was an age-old one. Both Hopkins and Rodney DePriest emphasized that the system was underfunded for the job that has to be done. Hopkins went on to say that billing had gotten worse under JXNWater. Kim Wade, like Zach Servis, suggested improving relations with JXN Water, while Albert Wilson expressed the desire for the city to reclaim the system itself. John Horhn took a stab at the current mayor, suggesting the state’s lack of trust in the city to operate the system. Lumumba had just proposed the creation of an advisory board for policy-development and for oversight of the system. No one spoke on what to do to keep the system running smoothly and under municipal control once JXN Water leaves.

As the discussion shifted to growing the economy, specific ideas were sparse. Socrates Garrett proposed a regional sales tax and legitimizing casinos. Albert Wilson wants to create a more business-friendly atmosphere to help attract businesses. Zach Servis indicated that he would support eliminating blight and corruption and providing tax breaks. Kim Wade felt that the key was improving the schools. James Hopkins suggested creating jobs for the working class and students. David Archie was concerned about opening up more places for eating, drinking, and entertainment, while John Horhn’s focus was on restoring basic services. Chokwe Lumumba indicated that the effort needs to be more centered on west and south Jackson, since areas like Fondren are developing quite successfully. Other ideas were floated, but none that specifically addressed growing the economy.

The fifth area of discussion dealt with improving Jackson’s relationship to the state’s leaders. Most vociferous on this topic was John Horhn, who suggested that many residents did not trust the city; that the county did not trust the city; and that the state did not trust the city. It was quite noticeable that the next candidate, James Hopkins, stated that it was the state that nobody trusted, to which there was quite a positive response from the audience. This clearly showed that the city – state relationship is a major issue. It showed even further as Marcus Wallace proposed strengthening the city’s position by uniting with the county’s legislative delegation. Tim Henderson similarly proposed creating a metro city council to deal with common problems at the state level. At the other end of the spectrum, Zach Servis suggested dealing with corruption and increasing trust and accountability. Kim Wade’s position was that the city should have been more thankful for the state’s assistance. Meanwhile, Chokwe Lumumba pointed to his successful work in dealing with the district school system as contrasted with the state’s position regarding the airport.

In order to close the session, the moderator asked what each candidate would do during their first 100 days. That question enabled each candidate to cover the field of ideas that they wanted to add or shore-up. Speaking most directly to the question were: (1) Socrates Garrett, who said that he would properly staff the city and set the discipline policies; (2) Tim Henderson, who, also would focus on the employees and the budget; (3) James Hopkins, who indicated that he would have the employees update their employment applications to see or how they best fit and to assure that the community centers are kept open; (4) Zach Servis, who indicated that he would have an audit conducted and would emphasize customer service to the staff; (5) Marcus Wallace, who said that he would meet with other leaders, the legislative delegation, and business leaders and clean-up the city; and (6) Albert Wilson, who also referenced studying the budget, staffing the administration, and meeting other leaders.

The forum was wide-ranging, but not incredibly informative. It easily revealed the major concerns and some of the differences between the candidates. Additionally, a very clear trend noted, was the fact that John Horhn was seriously gunning for Chokwe Lumumba. Four of his six responses were obvious criticisms of Lumumba’s administration. In similar fashion, Zach Servis talked about corruption in three of his six responses, hinting that there was corruption in the current administration. (Does this mean that they plan to win the election based upon how they attack Lumumba or the FBI’s charges against him?) 

During the course of the forum, the moderator, Byron Brown of WJTV, Channel 12 news, referred to the rules that had been distributed to the candidates. He appeared to chastise those two candidates on what we saw as trends in the forum. The other candidates generally stuck to trying to sell themselves and their ideas. Perhaps we will be able to determine other trends as other forums take place. If so, we will report on them as the occasions arise.

The second of the two forums was held at Anderson United Methodist Church. It was attended by one additional candidate, Wilfred Beal. The major difference between it and the JSU forum was that the Anderson forum spent a great deal of the time posing specific questions to each individual. This meant there was no opportunity to compare their answers on a range of issues.

On the other hand, over the course of the entire forum, it was possible to realize the tenor or feel of each candidate. For example, Marcus Wallace continued to focus on day-to-day municipal issues close to the neighborhood. Socrates Garrett continued to sound like a fairly successful businessman. John Horhn continued to spend considerable time criticizing the Lumumba administration. Chokwe Lumumba, in turn, stepped-up his defense of his administration. There were no major differences in what had been communicated last week.

Similar to the JSU forum, there was little time for each candidate to provide more comprehensive responses. Perhaps a most rehabilitating response came from David Archie as he responded to criticism of his term as a Hinds County Supervisor. The heavily attended forum ended on a positive note.