Well, it will be election time in our municipalities before you know it. If you are interested in throwing your proverbial hat into the race, you will have between January 4 and February 5 to make your intentions known and to file the proper paperwork.
The offices that will be up for consideration are those of mayor, alderman- at-large and alderman. Election for school board positions are required some years, but none of those positions are open this time around.
Offices are available in the county’s four municipalities, which include Braxton, D’Lo, Mendenhall and Magee.
Other communities in the county are not incorporated and therefore do not have an elected board.
In some of the most recent elections those seeking office have chosen to run as independents to prevent the need for a primary, which would be held April 6, and a possible run-off which would be scheduled for April 27 if needed.
The guidelines now call for the general election to be held on June 8. This is the Tuesday that follows the first Monday of the month as dictated by state election law.
The qualifications to run for office are pretty simple: Candidates must be qualified voters in the State of Mississippi. They must have lived in the district in which they are running for two years preceding the election. This restriction does not apply to municipalities of less than 1,000.
The candidate must not have been convicted of a felony, to include bribery, perjury, or any felony with a minimum of one year in confinement unless pardoned for the offense.
The candidate must never have been convicted of a felony in state or federal court excluding manslaughter or a violation of Internal Revenue Service or tax laws of the state, unless the misuse or abuse occurred while seeking office.
If you plan to seek office, you may notify Democratic or Republican party leadership of your intentions. If you choose to run as an independent, you must collect 15 signatures for an alderman’s slot and 50 for a municipality-wide race like mayor.
To participate in a primary election, you must file a letter of intent with the local party as well as with the city clerk’s office and pay a filing fee of $10.
Offering yourself up to serve as an elected leader can be an eye-opening experience. It is not all a popularity contest, though it doesn’t hurt to have a lot of support. At the same time, don’t count on everyone who said they would support you to do so. That too is part of the art of politics. It is not always about who is most qualified, it is about who gets the most votes on Election Day.
If you think you may want to make a difference, now is the time to get active and make a decision by the first of the new year.
Our elected leaders are the ones who prepare for the future as well as the present of the place we call home. They are where the buck stops in regard to law enforcement, cleanliness of our community and services which are offered to our residents. They ultimately are responsible for our quality of life issues and the decisions they make impact our daily lives for years to come.
