The candidates have had their say and now it is time for voters to have their say, as Clarksdale residents head to the polls Tuesday to vote for our next mayor and commissioners.
A slate of 27 candidates are vying for five spots on the Clarksdale Board of Mayor and Commissioners and the polls open at 7 a.m. Tuesday morning and close at 7 p.m. that night on an election that will determine the future of Clarksdale for the next four years.
This is a primary election and Tuesday’s ballot will see 23 candidates running as Democrats and, while no one has filed as Republican, four people are running as an Independent. Running as an Independent allows a candidate to bypass the party primary and move straight to the General Election in June.
Clarksdale does have four women seeking Commissioner posts.
Candidates must get 50-percent-plus-one-vote in their particular race to claim the Party Primary and advance to the General Election on Tuesday, June 3.
If no one receives the majority, the top two candidates will head to a Primary Runoff on Tuesday April 22.
Democrats who do not have an Independent running in their races will be declared the winner.
Democrats who do have an Independent running in their race move on to the General Election on Tuesday, June 3.
Party Primary winners and General Election winners taking office Tuesday, July 1.
Candidates, who have filed for public office, in alphabetical order and party professed, are:
Mayor:
1. Milton Gardner (I)
2. Bill Gresham (D)
3. Gregory Hoskins (D)
4. Charles Jones (D)
5. Kinchen “Bubba” O’Keefe (D)
6. Scotty A. Meredith (I)
7. Orlando W. Paden (D)
8. Henry Smith Jr. (D)
9. Mark Webb (D)
Ward 1:
1. Willie Dawson Jr. (D)
2. Bradford Fair (D)
3. Timothy W. Plunk “Bo” (D)
4. Ray Sykes (D)
Ward 2:
1. Phillip Davis (D)
2. Shannon L. Dixon (I)
3. Jimmy Harris (D)
4. Martin Deon Strong (D)
Ward 3:
1. Eddie Earl (D)
2. Crystal Hardmon (D)
3. Buster Moton (D)
4. Willie Turner Jr. (D)
Ward 4:
1. Frank Anthony Jr. (D)
2. Linda C. Downing (D)
3. Darron Griffin (I)
4. Lekitha Y. Hill (D)
5. Kim Seals (D)
6. Jordan Sledge (D)
Also on the ballot this spring will be Gregory Neely, Jr., who is running for the Clarksdale/Coahoma County Democratic Executive Committee.
State law says candidates were to submit their first campaign finance report listing donor contributions and expenditures to the City Clerk by March 25, a second one by April 25 and a final one July 27. Campaign Finance reports are public record and failure to file can result in $50 fines accruing daily and the State Attorney General shall file suit and prosecute the delinquent candidate and appropriate political committee.
Mississippi Code § 23-15-811 states that persons who fail to file campaign finance disclosures “shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be punished by a fine in a sum not to exceed Three Thousand Dollars ($3,000.00) or imprisoned for not longer than six (6) months or by both fine and imprisonment.”
The statute goes on to note that, “No candidate who is elected to office shall receive any salary or other remuneration for the office until he or she files all reports required by this article that are due as of the date the salary or remuneration is payable.”
Candidates for municipal office must complete and file with the State Ethics Commission a Statement of Economic Interest within fifteen days of becoming a candidate for public office.
The law also disqualifies a candidate who has not filed campaign finance reports from the ballot.
Candidates for city office must also clear up any outstanding fines, taxes or warrants from the municipalities they represent.
All candidates must be qualified voters of the city or ward they represent and must not have been convicted of certain felonies that resulted in incarceration, unless they have received a full pardon from the State of Mississippi. Candidates who have been pardoned must present that proof to their respective party and the City Clerk to qualify. Convicted felons wishing to receive a pardon must wait seven years before having their voting rights restored.
Candidates must also have lived in the city or ward they represent for the past two years and be able to prove that fact through voter registration rolls, Mississippi driver’s license or homestead exemption. Fraudulent filing of homestead exemption is a federal tax offense.
Candidates cannot have been legally declared mentally incompetent.
The Clarksdale Mayor has a current salary of $122,421.92 per year and Commissioners are paid $46,650 per year. Both Mayor and Commissioners get a monthly mileage and travel expense plus a home office expense, despite having office space at City Hall.
The annual compensation for Mayor went from $86,421 to $122,421.92 and Commissioner went from $26,650 to $46,650 on the city first meeting following their election in June 2021.
State law allows retirement to be based on the top four years of pay in the Mississippi Public Employee Retirement System (PERS) that is not able to sustain itself. City, county, school and all state employees qualify for PERS and must be at state employee to be fully vested.
