At some point last week, he couldn’t remember the exact day, Leroy Brooks was driving down Highway 45 trying to decide what he wanted for dinner when he had a spiritual epiphany.
“Out of nowhere, these words came into my spirit: ‘It is not time for you to go. To whom much is given, much is required,’” the 11th-term District 5 Lowndes County supervisor told a crowd of about 30 during a press conference Friday morning outside the courthouse. “I turned around. I went back to the office. I took the Bible and I turned to Luke, and I began to read that scripture. … When you’re blessed … with whatever God gives you in abundance, you’re supposed to use it to help other people. It was at that moment I said, ‘I’m running for mayor.’”
Brooks, 71, was first elected to the board of supervisors in 1983 and has been a longtime leader in the county’s Democratic Party. In the 2025 Columbus mayor’s race, he joins two others who have announced their intent to run – Ward 5 Columbus Councilman Stephen Jones and local pastor Darren Leach.
The winner will replace first-term Mayor Keith Gaskin, who announced in September he will not seek reelection and instead endorsed Leach.
No candidate can officially enter the race until qualifying for city elections begins Jan. 2.
At the press conference, Brooks said he had been waiting on whether his friend, District 41 State Rep. and former city councilman Kabir Karriem, would announce his candidacy. Instead, Karriem introduced Brooks on Friday.
“Leroy is not just a leader,” Karriem said in his remarks. “He’s a visionary, a playmaker, a gamechanger. His dedication to service has paved the way for others in our community and has set a standard for what it means to be a public servant.”
If elected, Brooks said, he would establish a Blue Ribbon Commission composed of members of what he called the city’s four “cornerstone” institutions – government, school, church and family. He believes that would help generate better unity, as well as cohesive ideas for issues like crime prevention.
“I don’t remember seeing elected officials saying we’re going to have zero tolerance on crime,” Brooks said. “But I tell you, when I get to be mayor, mamas and dads better keep Little Johnny in the house. We’re not going to have them tearing up the community and scaring folks. … People are not going to be afraid to sit on the porch.”
Brooks has openly opposed the city’s annexation plan, which was carried by the council’s Black majority in March on a 4-2 vote along racial lines, and the fact the council adopted a redistricting plan without a public hearing. He repeated criticisms of the council majority Friday, saying they have “lost their way” and are “more concerned about a free steak and a fifth of whiskey than they are about looking out for the children.”
He took aim at council members “jumping on employees” and pledged to support city workers if elected. Most recently, in open session of a council meeting, Vice Mayor Joseph Mickens, who represents Ward 2, accused Building Official Kenny Wiegel of lying and called for his resignation. Wiegel did not oblige.
“If Leroy Brooks is mayor, you will not be berated, downgraded or mistreated,” Brooks said. “I don’t care who’s on the city council.”
Though, if Brooks “had his druthers,” the council would get some new blood next year.
“You can’t move in a new direction if you’ve got the same mules pulling the other way,” Brooks said.
Brooks vowed to work with the Golden Triangle Development LINK and the Columbus-Lowndes Chamber of Commerce to bring new development to the city, and he promised to fight any attempt to divide the city or its government, racially or otherwise.
“This candidacy ain’t about no Black man being mayor,” he said. “This candidacy is about a man with skills, knowledge and understanding. We’re all going to work together.”
He also promised to run a clean campaign with integrity, but he offered a caveat.
“There’s a line I draw in the sand,” Brooks said. “If you step over the line, all bets are off. … If you’ve got people working on your campaign who want to act a fool, you better pull them in the corner and explain to them … I do not play.”
Brooks will remain on the supervisors board during his campaign. If he is elected mayor, he will step down from the county board.
Who is the Old Guard?
Regarding his prospective opponents, Brooks said he is “older,” “wiser,” “stronger” and “taller” than them both.
His experience, he believes, gives him the edge.
“There are a couple of things I have to learn over at City Hall: where the bathroom is and where the refrigerator is,” he said. “The rest of it I’m prepared for.”
He offered his respect for Leach. He did not do the same for Jones, though he noted the two “have no problems” with one another.
“I’ve got courage. I’m running because I believe in something,” he said. “Some of them are running because you’ve got other folks in the backroom still trying to control the city, and they didn’t do a good job when they were up there. Don’t be a coward. Come on out.”
He confirmed to The Dispatch later that he was referring to former mayor Robert Smith, who lost to Gaskin in 2021.
That echoed concerns Brooks raised in a September letter to the editor published in The Dispatch. Jones responded with his own letter, in which he said he refused to “kiss the ring” of Brooks’ “Old Guard.”
“Now Stephen, he refers to me as ‘old guard,’ but I remember the first time he ran he was knocking on my door because he needed my help. Every Black official who has held office in this town has knocked on that door.”
Speaking with The Dispatch on Friday afternoon, Jones admitted he visited Brooks before his first council campaign in 2016. He said he also visited with other Democratic local leaders, including Karriem, Smith, former Ward 1 Councilman Gene Taylor and District 4 Supervisor Jeff Smith.
“I didn’t kiss the ring,” Jones said. “It was just the respect I had for him.”
Jones said city officials get along better than most people think, and he takes issue with the notion the council majority “isn’t working with” Gaskin or the other councilmen.
“People always say we’re not working with them, but people never say (people) aren’t working with us,” he said. “I’m the type of person that I can work with anybody. … I can lead anybody. It’s all about discussion, negotiation … and working together.”
Leach did not return a call or message for comment by press time.
Zack Plair is the managing editor for The Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 34 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 34 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
