Candidates for Lieutenant Governor spoke at the Neshoba County Fair

Candidates for Lieutenant Governor Jay Hughes, Delbert Hosemann and Shane Quick spoke at the Neshoba County Fair 2019.

Jay Hughes is leaving his position in the Mississippi House to run for Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi in 2019.

“Transparency has left the Capitol and taken common sense with it,” said Hughes.

From his experience as a truck driver, Hughes said he doesn’t need to ask what the roads of Mississippi need. And that his experience losing his mother because of being too far from the hospital, she died in the ambulance.

Hughes said he’s not a career politician and that he “gets it.” He calls his platform personal, not political.

Hughes touched on his passion for public schools, saying that teachers want respect, less standardized testing, and to just be able to teach.

“Instead of paying them what’s left after vouchers…. Let’s pay them what they’re worth.”

Hughes said the money should be in schools, not in poster hangers and weight-loss organizations, referring to money recently found to be pushed toward Weight Watchers.

Hughes added that undercutting mental health will not address the issue in this state and that jail doesn’t cure it.

While Hughes captivated his crowd, at one point, he was met with a loud protest of boos when suggesting that Delbert Hosemann was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, as opposed to Jay Hughes, who claims he was born “with a plastic spoon” in his mouth.

Candidate for Secretary of State Shane Quick spoke at the Neshoba County Fair.

Quick said a more “blue-collar” approach is needed for Mississippi’s problems.

Quick said the EPA may not be needed to bring in the pumps in the South Delta if the farmers out of work are out there putting down their own dams and pumps and moving the water over.

“Why aren’t we putting salt blocks in the Gulf to help restore the salinity?” said Quick. “These are real, blue-collar solutions.”

Quick said he has the blue-collar perspective. He once studied medicine but said a flu shot made him lose his sight to the point of not being able to use a stethoscope.

Other alternatives Quick suggested involved farming Hemp and raising alligators that may otherwise be considered a nuisance or danger.

Taking a shot at typical politicians, Quick said he won’t be having signs or literature as his word speaks for itself. 

Delbert Hosemann spoke at the Neshoba County Fair. He is not seeking reelection as Secretary of State but has instead decided to run for Lieutenant Governor in 2019.

Hosemann touted his experience as Secretary of State being a large part of boosting business in Mississippi.

“We re-wrote every single business law in Mississippi,” said Hosemann. “And we’ve made it easier for businesses to open in Mississippi.”

Hosemann said he’s for increasing teacher pay, boosting early childhood education, and helping small businesses by increasing workforce development.

“Every single promise I’ve made isn’t just longterm,” said Hosemann. “They start next year.”