It has long been our belief that the greatest public service a citizen can perform is to run for office in local elections. Every election year, we encourage citizens to make themselves available to serve.

There is no shortage of competent, community-minded citizens in our communities, the kind of people we need to move our communities forward.

Qualifying for 2025 municipal elections in the Golden Triangle begins on Jan. 1. We renew our call on citizens to run for these offices.

It is a decision that should be carefully deliberated. The best candidates have a broad view of the issues and a commitment to being well-informed and capable of making these decisions. But knowing the issues is just one part of the process.

For those who have never served in local government, the processes, demands and regulations that form the basic framework of local government can be confusing.

That is why we commend the Mississippi State University Extension Service’s Center for Government and Community Development for developing a series of seminars designed especially for candidates who have never served in local government.

The first “Ready to Lead” virtual workshop will run on Nov. 25, followed by another on Dec. 19 and the last on Jan. 6. Over the course of around an hour, these seminars will try to prepare future candidates for the expectations of public office and complexities of local government, focusing on four important topics: understanding municipal government, the roles and responsibilities of elected officials, the chief functions of government and the basic legal requirements to run.

We encourage anyone who is considering becoming a candidate to take advantage of these free seminars. The workshop signups can be found online at CGCD’s website under resources for local government.

Meanwhile, The Dispatch will again provide information that voters should know about the offices and candidates, beginning with our Voters Guide, which features detailed information on the offices up for election, the candidates’ backgrounds and their responses to questions about important issues.

We will follow that with candidate forums in Columbus and Starkville, where all office-seekers will have a chance to make their cases and respond to questions from voters. Details on these events will appear in the paper in coming weeks.

Combined, these opportunities prepare both candidates and voters with useful information in the lead up to primary and general elections.

The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.