The Mississippi Free Press sent the following questionnaire to Sen. John Horhn ahead of the April 22, 2025, municipal Democratic primary runoff, in which he is challenging the incumbent, Chokwe A. Lumumba, in hopes of becoming the next mayor of Jackson. We present his responses with no edits.
You’ve spent over 30 years as a Mississippi senator. What can you do in your role as Mayor of Jackson that you couldn’t accomplish as a state senator?
My role in the state senate has been focused on allocating funding and establishing policy for Central Mississippi, which includes Jackson. My role as the mayor will be focused around improving quality of life for Jackson residents through bringing in resources, improving the management of city services and infrastructure, growing our revenue, tracking our performance, and communicating effectively to the public. Our first priority will be restoring trust, accountability, and transparency to the citizens of Jackson, county, and state government.
Many of Jackson’s voters selected other candidates besides you or Mayor Lumumba during the April 1 primary. What do you say to voters who are still undecided?
83% of Jacksonians voted for change and almost 50% voted for our campaign. We believe the people of Jackson are ready for change and a leader who has experience, integrity, and restore trust in our city government.
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For the voters who are undecided I ask, “Are you satisfied with the current conditions of the city? If not, what would you like to see done better?” The key indicator of our city’s decline is population loss. Since the current administration took office 8 years ago, we’ve lost roughly 25,000 people or 3,000 people each year. Our administration is ready to reverse that trend to stabilize our communities and economy.
You’ve said that one of your first priorities, if elected, would be to restore trust in Jackson’s government officials. How will you do that?
You won’t find this anywhere else.
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