Recently, the MeridianTeaParty.com mailed questionnaires to all of the candidates who are running for various offices within Lauderdale County. The questions asked covered a broad range of topics and were asked in such a way to give the candidates an opportunity to provide their honest and thoughtful opinions. We tried very hard to avoid leading questions and focused more on open-ended questions such as “What do you think about ______?” We also tried to ask some questions to give us an idea of the candidate’s work and educational experiences.
We promised each candidate that if they returned the completed questionnaire, they would receive an open invitation to the Candidate Forum(s) which we plan to hold during July. If anyone (candidates or otherwise) would like to have a copy of the blank questionnaire, click here.
As we receive completed questionnaires, we will scan them into a PDF file format and link the questionnaires to each respective candidates name below. In order to view the questionnaires, you will need Adobe Reader installed on your computer.
If a candidate’s questionnaire is available, the candidate’s name will be in red.
To open a questionnaire, simply click on the link on the candidate’s name.
State Legislature Races
MS Senate District 31
| Name | Telephone # | Party | Status |
| Melvin Hendricks | 601-483-3084 | Democrat | Candidate |
| Terry C Burton | 601-683-6695 | Republican | Incumbent |
| Tad Campbell | 601-737-5574 | Republican | Candidate |
MS Senate District 32
| Name | Telephone # | Party | Status |
| Clark Adams**** | | Democrat | Candidate |
| Sampson Jackson | | Democrat | Incumbent |
**** Every effort was made to locate a mailing address for the candidate and MTP was unable to find any way to send the questionnaire to this candidate.
MS Senate District 33
| Name | Telephone # | Party | Status |
| Videt Carmichael | 601-695-2750 | Republican | Incumbent |
MS House District 81
| Name | Telephone # | Party | Status |
| Steve Horne | 601-644-9974 | Republican | Incumbent |
MS House District 82
| Name | Telephone # | Party | Status |
| Wilbert Jones | 601-482-4539 | Democrat | Incumbent |
| Charles Young | | Democrat | Candidate |
MS House District 83
| Name | Telephone # | Party | Status |
| Gary Houston | | Democrat | Candidate |
| Samuel Thompson | 601-486-3818 | Independent | Candidate |
| Greg Snowden | 601-693-5700 | Republican | Incumbent |
MS House District 84
| Name | Telephone # | Party | Status |
| William G. Lee**** | | Democrat | Candidate |
| Craig Hitt | 601-626-7064 | Republican | Candidate |
| William E. Shirley | 601-776-3428 | Republican | Candidate |
**** Every effort was made to locate a mailing address for the candidate and MTP was unable to find any way to send the questionnaire to this candidate.
Lauderdale County Races
Chancery Clerk
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Carolyn Mooney | 601-482-9701 | 601-693-4943 | Republican | Incumbent |
Circuit Clerk
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Donna Jill Johnson | 601-482-9731 | 601-483-8552 | Republican | Incumbent |
District 1 Constable
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Tommie L Coker | 601-934-4409 | 601-693-4023 | Republican | Incumbent |
District 2 Constable
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Ondray M Harris, Sr | 601-482-9815 | 601-453-5450 | Democrat | Incumbent |
District 3 Constable
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Mike Myers | 601-737-5677 | | Republican | Incumbent |
District 4 Constable
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Charles W Hughes | 601-485-2430 | 601-485-6154 | Democrat | |
| John Nelson, Jr | 601-527-0065 | 601-553-0849 | Democrat | |
| Jim Osborne | 601-483-0366 | | Independent | |
| Lee "Chuck" Roberts | 601-527-3659 | 601-482-0261 | Republican | |
| Roger D Scarbrough, Sr | 601-938-0605 | 601-479-2812 | Democrat | |
| Jason Wiggins | 601-604-0200 | 601-481-5385 | Republican | |
County Attorney
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Justin Cobb | 601-693-1933 | 601-482-0693 | Republican | Incumbent |
County Surveyor
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Bruce Williams | 601-483-0862 | 601-213-0438 | Independent | Incumbent |
Coroner
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Ruby Capers | 601-968-1034
| 601-696-6747 | Democrat | |
| Clayton Cobler*** | 601-485-2958 | 601-626-0032 | Republican | Incumbent |
*** The candidate asserted that his completed questionnaire was originally emailed to MeridianTeaParty.com prior to the deadline but due to technical difficulties with his email it was not received by MeridianTeaParty.com until after the deadline.
Dist 1 Justice Court Judge
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Richard L "Ricky" Roberts | 601-482-9879 | 601-693-4023 | Republican | Incumbent |
Dist 2 Justice Court Judge
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Eddie Gray Holt | 662-528-6966
| | Independent | |
| M Robbie Robinson | 601-482-9879 | 601-482-7397 | Democrat | Incumbent |
Dist 3 Justice Court Judge
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Darrell Theall | 601-482-9876 | 601-986-5483 | Republican | Incumbent |
Dist 4 Justice Court Judge
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Charles Graham | 601-553-0555
| 601-616-2475 | Republican | |
| Gerald W. Thompson | 601-616-1387 | 601-644-3122 | Independent | Incumbent |
Sheriff
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Ricardo Clayton | 601-480-4829
| 601-527-0984 | Independent | |
| Buck Roberts | 601-484-6825 | 601-693-1532 | Republican | |
| William D "Billy" Sollie | 601-482-9806 | 601-626-0057 | Republican | Incumbent |
Superintendent of Education
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Billy Burnham | 601-483-3532
| 601-681-6230 | Republican | |
| Randy Hodges | 601-693-1683 | 601-986-2370 | Republican | Incumbent |
Supervisor District 1
Supervisor District 2
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Peter Boggan | 601-527-8404
| 601-632-4736 | Democrat
| |
| Greg Lane | 601-692-2752 | 601-934-5528 | Democrat
| |
| Norbert D Luster | 601-880-3130 | 601-485-5546 | Democrat
| |
| Wayman Newell | 601-482-9746 | 601-632-1012 | Republican | Incumbent |
Supervisor District 3
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| George Bennette | 601-934-4414
| | Republican | |
| Hugh Davis | 601-482-0806 | | Republican
| |
| Mary Lee Long-Bowen | 601-604-0343 | | Independent | |
| Jerry Shields | 601-626-7839 | | Republican | |
| Josh Todd | 601-727-2311 | 601-737-4188 | Republican | |
| Joseph "Joe" White | 601-485-1852 | 601-938-7129
| Republican | |
Supervisor District 4
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| John C Harris | 601-938-5252
| | Democrat
| |
| Joseph "Joe" Norwood | 601-482-9746 | 601-990-6969 | Democrat
| Incumbent |
| Harry "Randy" Routt | 601-693-1569 | 601-692-3211 | Republican | |
Supervisor District 5
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Ray Boswell | 601-482-9746
| 601-527-3802 | Republican | Incumbent |
| Daniel Cook | 601-655-8559 | 601-527-9763 | Democrat
| |
| Jimmie Moore | 601-644-0688 | 601-479-3777 | Republican | |
| Peter A Russell | 601-486-4952 | 601-480-3553 | Republican | |
| Kyle Rutledge | 601-917-3864 | 601-644-3915 | Republican | |
Tax Assessor
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Van Lewis | 601-938-4483
| 601-934-1683 | Republican | |
| James D. Rainey | 601-527-9316 | 601-644-3410 | Republican | |
| Jimmy Slay | 601-482-9779 | 601-693-3066
| Republican | Incumbent |
Tax Collector
| Name | Tel #1 | Tel #2 | Party | |
| Michael W Riordan III | 601-527-0302 | 601-482-8305 | Democrat
| |
| Stanley Shannon | 601-482-5399 | 601-644-3268
| Republican | Incumbent |
Sorry that most of the people seeking support did not respond. I hope that those of us that did will still get the opportunity to speak to your group before the August 2nd primary.
I want to thank those candidates for office that took the time to respond to the questionnaire. Your responding speaks volumes about the way you feel about the office you seek as well as the voters of this county. Thank you.
The lack of response by some candidates for Supervisor races and other contested races, also speaks volumes about the way they feel about the office and the voters.
I agree with Mr. Pierce. I feel the candidates who didn’t respond, current incumbents (they can be replaced with write-ins) or not, don’t care enough about the people they’ll repesent. It truly does speak volumes about the persons who didn’t feel they needed to let the voters know where they stand on issues important to ALL of us. We don’t get paid to vote. We vote because we care about who will represent us on important issues. We vote for people who will talk to us and tell us where they stand and how they will represent us.
I think I can shed some light on the lack of response.
I am a well educated individual, at the doctorate level, and I have attended several of your meetings. When I read the questionnaire that was handed out to all candidates I made the prediction that there would be approximately only 1 out of 10 candidates that would complete the form. The questionnaire goes against all known theories about effectively collecting information through a questionnaire. It was bulky and cumbersome, for both candidates and the person reading the questionnaire. It was long and tedious. I didn’t want to read any of them. Additionally so many of the questions were irrelevant considering each office individually. I think the problem here is not with the candidates, but rather with the design of your questionnaire, and the end result is that you did not achieve your purpose. The purpose should have been to collect information about each candidate which would enable the voter to make an informed decision. Next time, keep it simple, straightforward, short, and easy to read. I am sure you response rate will be much better.
I think Tea Party Supporter has miss-understood the intent of the questionnaire. The intent was to cut away from the campaign jargon and get to the belief system of the candidate.
We wanted to get past how many children they have, how long they have done whatever, where they go to church etc, and find out who they really are and if they will put in writing what they really believe about the issues pertaining to the office they are seeking.
I’m sorry the questionnaire didn’t please this person but I liked the questionnaire personally. I also don’t care if all of the candidates returned theirs or not. That was their choice and I will make my choice at the ballot box accordingly.
Thanks Meridian Tea Party .It help to pick who I going to vote for for supervisor in district 5 . I believe if a candidate can’t spend a little time to do this they don’t need the job .
Dear Tea Party Members,
I wanted to let you know how sorry I am for not getting Randy’s information in on time. It was my fault. I simply had the wrong due date down and couldn’t reach anyone on the Tea Party phone number to find out the correct date. However, Randy did answer all of the questions and sent them in to Paul.
Randy and I have a lot of respect for the Tea Party, it’s concerns and members. Randy will not be speaking tonight so please
give Randy a call or go to randyhodges.com if you have any questions about him or the job he is doing for you as your Lauderdale County Superintendent of Education.
He has Managed the finances well during difficult financial times without raising your taxes during the last three years along with helping our great teachers keep our schools ranked at the top statewide. Thank you again for considering Randy Hodges on August 2nd.
Sincerely,
Delaine Hodges
Questions – call 601-986-2370 / 601-693-1683
Thank you Tea Party for this informative site. It has helped with my decisions on a couple of candidates that I was unsure about. I would like to submit to the candidates, especially Supervisors and Representatives, that they not only return phone calls, but emails as well. At least an acknowlegement that they were received and read would be appreciated. I must assume that if I do not receive a response, either the representative is not familiar with a computer or does not care. For this reason I will be voting for Eddie Harper, who has answered emails as my past supervisor, and not Hank Florey, who has ignored my emails as my present surpervisor. Thank you.
Thank you Terry….. I am always available by email or cell…. Eharper69@aol.com or 601-934-8988…. Thanks again and please ask everyone to return to the polls on Aug 23rd