Tate Reeves to speak in Meridian
Reeves’ first campaign for elected office was in 2003, when he was working as a certified financial analyst and entered the open race for treasurer. Reeves said Monday that he ran for treasurer because he saw other young people and their families moving outside Mississippi to pursue careers.
‘‘Young people weren’t leaving our state because they wanted to. They were leaving because they thought they had to,’’ Reeves said. ‘‘And there was one man who stood up and was willing to do something about it. His name was Haley Barbour, and he was going to put his own successful career on hold to run for governor. He was running on a platform to make Mississippi a good place to do business again, and I thought he might could use some help.’’
Barbour, a Yazoo City native, was a high-profile Washington lobbyist when he returned to Mississippi and won the governorship in 2003.
Reeves said two terms as state treasurer have prepared him to become lieutenant governor. He said he has been a watchdog of Mississippi’s money and has never become ‘‘a creature of government.’’
Hewes owns an insurance business and is a real estate broker. He said that during college he worked as a longshoreman.
‘‘People want someone representing them who has walked in their shoes — a real, live person, not a bureaucrat, not somebody who pushes paper, but somebody who has faced the same issues they face every day,’’ Hewes said.
Candidates filed campaign finance reports last week showing how much they raised and spent during 2010.
Reeves raised $546,147, spent $91,491 and ended the year with $1.6 million cash on hand. Hewes raised $514,280, spent $168,252 and ended the year with $1 million.
Meridian Star
2/8/11
