JACKSON, Miss.—Mississippi Sen. John Horhn held a commanding lead over incumbent Chokwe A. Lumumba in the Democratic primary for Jackson mayor after voters cast their ballots Tuesday.
With 24,591 votes counted as of Wednesday morning, WAPT’s tally showed that Horhn led Lumumba with over 48% of the vote, compared to Lumumba with just under 17% of the vote; the remainder was split among 10 other candidates. Hohrn would have needed to surpass 50% of the vote to win the primary outright and avoid a runoff.
“Jackson is really ready for change. They’re ready for something different,” Horhn told reporters as the votes were still being counted Tuesday evening.
‘Making Sure That Our City Remains Our City’
Lumumba has led the capital city since his first election in 2017 but faced significant headwinds this year after being indicted on federal bribery charges. He has denied all allegations of wrongdoing.
In his second term, the embattled incumbent had a fraught relationship with the Republican Legislature and some state leaders as he stood fervently against the State of Mississippi’s attempts to usurp control of Jackson’s assets.
“This campaign is about making sure that our city remains our city,” Lumumba said in a speech to his supporters on Tuesday night, drawing cheers and applause.
“I have always wanted to be a mayor of every part of Jackson,” the mayor continued. “I admit that I love this city so much that I am going to fight relentlessly in order to make sure that everybody gets the quality of life they deserve.”
Horhn, a longtime Democratic senator who has run for Jackson’s mayoral seat multiple times, touts his close working relationships with lawmakers from both sides of the aisle and argues that he would be better able to make agreements that benefit Jackson. But like Lumumba, he has opposed State efforts to take over parts of the City.
In the Jackson Republican primary, Kenny Gee will go to a runoff against Wilfred Beal on April 22.
The general election for mayor and other municipal elections across the state is June 3.
City Council Results
In the Jackson City Council races, several incumbents retained their positions, WLBT reported as the results came in the evening of April 1.
Jasmine Barnes is the winner of the Ward 1 Democratic primary. She will face independent Ashby Foote, the incumbent, as well as independent Grace Greene in the June 3 general election.
Ward 2 City Councilwoman Tina Clay retained her seat, beating Marcus Cheatham. She will face Bethany Williams-Sherif, the Republican candidate, on June 3.
Ward 4 City Councilman Brian Grizzell overwhelmed Malcolm May, winning over 70% of the vote in the Democratic primary.
Ward 5 City Councilman Vernon Hartley won over 55% of the votes in Tuesday’s primary. He will face Independent Ray McCants on June 3.
The race for Ward 6 will go to a runoff election on April 22 since none of the candidates was able to secure 50% plus 1 of the votes. Residents in that ward will vote again on April 22, choosing between Democrats Emon Thompson and Lashia Brown-Thomas.
The race for the Ward 7 Jackson City Council seat will also head to a runoff election between Kevin Parkinson and Quint Withers on April 22. Whoever wins the runoff will face Independent Ron Aldridge in the June 3 general election.
