Three Columbus councilmen have qualified to run in county and state elections this year and if they are declared winners they would be forced to vacate their council posts mid-term.
If all three win, it would leave the city council scrambling after November for enough members to have a legal meeting.
Ward 5 councilman Kabir Karriem is challenging Democratic incumbent Esther Harrison for the District 41 state representative slot. Last week, Ward 4 councilman Marty Turner qualified to run for District 5 Lowndes County supervisor, and Ward 2 councilman Joseph Mickens qualified to run for Lowndes County circuit clerk.
If all three win, it would leave the city council without a quorum until a special election is scheduled, as the city has no mechanism that allows appointments to the council — even on an interim basis, according to city attorney Jeff Turnage. Without a quorum (which requires four members), the council cannot legally meet, and state law requires the council to meet at least once monthly.
“I’m not aware of any procedure for appointment that we have,” city chief administrative officer David Armstrong said. “We’ll just have to cross that bridge when and if we get there.”
Turnage said the state constitution disallows sitting councilmen from simultaneously holding public office in another branch of government via its “Separation of Powers Doctrine.” Since county supervisors and circuit clerks are both considered elected positions in the judicial branch, and councilmen are legislative positions, that would force both Mickens and Turner to vacate the council if they win their elections.
Though other cities in Mississippi allow councilmen to also serve as state legislators, Columbus — a special-charter municipality — does not. Turnage said he confirmed that through the attorney general’s office last year, when Ward 6 councilman Bill Gavin ran unsuccessfully to replace deceased District 17 state Sen. Terry Brown.
All three councilmen can legally remain in place while they run for other offices, Turnage said.
Despite the quandary the city could face if it cannot field a quorum for council meetings, Mayor Robert Smith said on Monday that it was far from time to be concerned about how that could affect the city government’s stability. He also wouldn’t speculate on why three councilmen would seek office elsewhere in the same election cycle.
“Until that time comes, it’s nothing to be alarmed about,” Smith said. “They have the right to run, and that’s between them and their constituents…if their constituents don’t have a problem with it, then I don’t.”
Columbus councilmen earn $17,500 per year, compared to the $45,700 annual salary Lowndes County supervisors earn. Circuit clerk pay is based on fee collection and is capped at $90,000 per year. State representatives earn $10,000 per year, plus per diem.
Money aside, Karriem said he is seeking state office because he felt he could accomplish more for his constituents in that capacity.
“I can’t speak for the other councilmen. I can only speak for myself,” said Karriem, who is serving his second term on the city council. “I feel like I can better serve the people as (representative) of District 41.”
For Mickens, another second-term councilman, seeking county office is simply a way to raise his status in public service. Regardless of whether he’s a councilman or circuit clerk, he vowed to remain vocal about issues in ward 2.
“I want to elevate myself to the next level,” Mickens said. “I want a challenge, and I think this is a great challenge. Some people (in Ward 2) are going to want me gone (from the council), while others will be disappointed to see me leave. No one, I think, will be so caught up in themselves that they will be against me bettering myself.”
Turner, on Monday, said he qualified to run for District 5 supervisor unaware he couldn’t hold both positions. In fact, he said he is running, in part, to “increase the number of people I serve.”
If he indeed cannot hold both positions legally, first-term councilman Turner said he’d have to consult his campaign team and his family to decide whether to drop out of the county race or stay the course and vacate his councilman post if he is elected supervisor.
“I would have to think hard on that one,” Turner said.
Zack Plair is the managing editor for The Dispatch.
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