Mississippi residents hoping to run for local office this year have until 5 p.m. on Jan. 31 to turn in qualifying paperwork to their local municipal clerkâs office.
Voters will head to the polls for primary elections on Tuesday, April 1, with a general election following on June 3 to cast ballots for mayors, city councilmembers and boards of aldermen positions.
So far, nearly a dozen candidates have turned in paperwork to run for mayor in the capital City of Jackson in hopes of unseating the Democratic incumbent mayor, Chokwe A. Lumumba, a Jan. 24 memo from the Jackson Municipal Clerkâs office shows.Â
Many will also run to represent their wards on the Jackson City Council this year. Before casting a ballot for council representation, Jackson residents should confirm that the ward they live in aligns with new maps approved by the Jackson City Council in August 2024, as the Clarion-Ledgerâs Charlie Drape reported on Jan. 28.Â
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Federal mandates required the council to redraw the ward maps ahead of the 2025 election after Census data show that the population of the wards were unbalanced.
Southern Poverty Law Center State Director Waikinya Clanton said in an interview with the Mississippi Free Press on June 20, 2024, that before council members vote on new ward maps, Jackson residents need time to understand how redistricting may affect their community. Photo courtesy Southern Poverty Law Center ” data-medium-file=”https://i0.wp.com/www.mississippifreepress.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Waikinya-Clanton_courtesy-Southern-Poverty-Law-Center.jpg?fit=240%2C300&ssl=1″ data-large-file=”https://i0.wp.com/www.mississippifreepress.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Waikinya-Clanton_courtesy-Southern-Poverty-Law-Center.jpg?fit=780%2C975&ssl=1″ src=”https://i0.wp.com/www.mississippifreepress.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Waikinya-Clanton_courtesy-Southern-Poverty-Law-Center.jpg?resize=780%2C975&ssl=1″ alt=”Headshot of a woman with short hair, thick-rimmed glasses and wearing a raspberry colored top” class=”wp-image-43921″ srcset=”https://i0.wp.com/www.mississippifreepress.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Waikinya-Clanton_courtesy-Southern-Poverty-Law-Center.jpg?resize=819%2C1024&ssl=1 819w, https://i0.wp.com/www.mississippifreepress.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Waikinya-Clanton_courtesy-Southern-Poverty-Law-Center.jpg?resize=240%2C300&ssl=1 240w, https://i0.wp.com/www.mississippifreepress.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Waikinya-Clanton_courtesy-Southern-Poverty-Law-Center.jpg?resize=768%2C960&ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.mississippifreepress.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Waikinya-Clanton_courtesy-Southern-Poverty-Law-Center.jpg?resize=400%2C500&ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.mississippifreepress.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Waikinya-Clanton_courtesy-Southern-Poverty-Law-Center.jpg?w=960&ssl=1 960w, https://i0.wp.com/www.mississippifreepress.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Waikinya-Clanton_courtesy-Southern-Poverty-Law-Center-819×1024.jpg?w=370&ssl=1 370w” sizes=”(max-width: 780px) 100vw, 780px”>Southern Poverty Law Center State Director Waikinya Clanton said in an interview with the Mississippi Free Press on June 20, 2024, that redistricting could have an impact on the wards that residents reside in. Photo courtesy of the Southern Poverty Law Center
âThese maps could change who your representative is,â Southern Poverty Law Center
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