Voters will have a chance to hear from three candidates vying for the Mississippi House of Representatives District 38 seat at a Thursday evening forum at the Greensboro Center in Starkville.
The Starkville Daily News is hosting forum, starting at 6 p.m., for the candidates, who are running in a special election to replace former, long-tenured representative Tyrone Ellis (D-Starkville). Ellis, 71 and also a church pastor, announced his retirement at the end of June, saying he looked forward to spending more time with his family, six grandchildren and his Noxubee County congregation.
The State Board of Election Commissioners has certified three candidates — Narrissa Dawn Bradford, Cheikh A. Taylor and Lisa Wynn — for the Nov. 7 special election. Every candidate is a Starkville resident.
District 38 includes portions of Clay, Lowndes and Oktibbeha counties.
Starkville Daily News Editor Ryan Phillips said each of the candidates has confirmed their attendance at Thursday’s forum.
Phillips said the forum should last about an hour. He noted the Starkville Daily News is accepting questions submitted via social media or email until Thursday, and will select questions to ask the candidates.
Phillips said the event is a forum, while will allow candidates time to respond to question, rather than a debate. He said the newspaper wants to give each candidate the same amount of time to answer questions.
Bradford is a former fashion model-turned-entrepreneur, media executive and activist.
Taylor is the executive director of the Brickfire Project, a child-centered organization that includes a day care and after-school programs.
Wynn, the first candidate to announce her intent to run for the election, served as Starkville’s Ward 2 Alderman from 2013-17, before Sandra Sistrunk unseated her in June’s municipal election.
Phillips said the forum will be a vital chance to learn about the candidates before the election.
“We’re excited to give the community the opportunity to come out,” Phillips said. “This is such an important election. With Tyrone Ellis retiring after almost four decades in the legislature, I think it’s one of the most important elections we’ll have in the district. It’s really important that voters don’t take this lightly, that they come out and get a firm idea of the candidates before they go out to the polls on November.”
Alex Holloway was formerly a reporter with The Dispatch.
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