State Sen. David Jordan, a 30-year veteran of the Mississippi Senate, is seeking reelection against two candidates next Tuesday — an independent candidate and a Republican.
Jordan, who turned 90 this year, says he feels there is still more for him to do.
“We’re in a critical point right now,” he said. “I have the experience, and I have friends in the Legislature of both parties. I figure that I’ll need to hang on a while longer to be able to ensure that we get (Greenwood Leflore Hospital) better than where it is.”
Curressia Brown, an independent candidate, said this election is an opportunity for a new generation of leadership.
“I believe that age is important. (Jordan’s) blessed to be 90,” she said. “I believe at 56 years old, I have the energy, I have the capacity and I’m motivated at this time to take up the baton and to run this next leg of the race on behalf of the citizens in District 24.”
Marty Evans Jr., the Republican nominee, is less widely known than his two opponents.
“I want it to be known by your readers that if I go to be the senator for District 24, I will fight as long as I can to get whatever God wants to do to save our hospital,” he said.
District 24 includes Leflore, Tallahatchie and Panola counties. State senators make $23,500 per year.
Jordan is a former teacher and Greenwood City Council member. He is the chair of the Senate’s Drug Policy Committee and serves on several other committees.
He is an advocate for Medicaid expansion and is concerned about education, drug policy and tourism. Jordan was able to secure funding for the Emmett Till statue now installed at Rail Spike Park.
That was accomplished thanks to relationships built through his experience, he said.
“I do have some influence in the state Senate because of my longevity there,” he said.
Should he be reelected, Jordan would be 94 at the conclusion of his next term. However, he said he is not letting his age stand in the way of his ability to be effective.
“Efficiency is what I’m worried about,” he said. “I’m just as efficient in my mind as I was 10 years ago or more. That’s what you look at.”
Brown, a retired Mississippi Valley State University administrator, is proudly touting her status as an independent candidate. She said she doesn’t want party labels to get in the way of working with others.
“There are those who would say or suggest if a person is an independent, they are not loyal to either party. My loyalty is to the people of this district,” she said.
She emphasized her respect for Jordan but also said that Jordan’s tenure in the state Senate has been accompanied by a decline in the district’s prestige.
“You can’t say, ‘This is the shape we’re in,’ and then say, ‘but I need to stay here,’” she said. “Look at the loss of population in Greenwood and Leflore County. Look at economic development and how it’s shaped up in the state of Mississippi.”
And while Jordan has said his relationships in the state Senate contribute to its success, Brown said there is no reason why she can’t develop those same relationships over time.
Furthermore, Brown said that she doesn’t see a long-term plan from Jordan. “I’m not hearing what we’re doing right now to position us for tomorrow or for five years from now or 10 years from now or 20 years from now.”
Brown said she hopes to dispel the fears of voting for an independent candidate and is running because she sees greater potential in the district.
Evans said he is pastor of a church in Schlater and another in Tutwiler. He said he considers his hometown to be Greenville and he currently resides in Enid.
“My emphasis is that I want to do what the Lord tells me to do,” he said.
If elected, he plans on sharing that with his fellow members in the state Senate.
Evans, 72, said he wants the residents of Greenwood and Leflore County to know that his objective is “to work as hard as I can to try to save our hospital and to make sure that the people of our district have good health care available to them.”
- Contact Kevin Edwards at 662-581-7233 or kedwards@gwcommonwealth.com.
