Sign at the 2025 Neshoba County Fair (Photo by Frank Corder)
- Fairgoers are listening and evaluating the political speeches on Wednesday and Thursday as they look ahead to 2027.
Wondering the alleys of the 2025 Neshoba County Fair, Ginger and Greg Monroe were discussing the 2027 Mississippi Governor’s race. Ginger is interested in Attorney General Lynn Fitch (R), while her husband of 37 years is indifferent nearly two years out from the Primary Elections.
The fair, long a must-stop for politicians hoping to win statewide office, is an annual event where candidates try their best to persuade voters why they should lead Mississippi into the future.
Wednesday was the first of two days when candidates could speak directly to voters at the Founders Square Pavilion. Nearly 200 people sat through temperatures above 90 degrees as speakers shared their visions.
For voters such as Greg, Neshoba is more of a place he can listen to the candidates and begin evaluating their positions on issues important to him. The engineer from Canton said that the fair allows him to hear directly from the candidates, not through the filter of the media.
“The fair is a way for me to judge if they are real or just mimicking what they voter what to hear,” Greg said.
Both of the Monroes are interested in education, economic development, and financial issues.
For Eva Whitlock, the fair allows her to see the candidates in person and learn more about issues important to her and her family.
The mother of three is interested in education, from K-12 to higher learning. The 32-year-old nurse does not want her children saddled with massive student loan debt. Whitlock, who is married to a doctor, said combined they are paying on north of $150,000 in student debt, spending more than $1,100 a month in loan payments.
“This allows me to hear what the politicians plan to do about the issues,” Whitlock said, adding that she encouraged efforts to rein in college costs during the 2025 legislative session.
Whitlock, who attended last year’s speeches, said they help her in the decision-making process. By Wednesday morning, she had a couple of candidates for governor she was interested in, but she would not offer their names.
Seventeen-year-old Nathan Washington said the fair could help influence his first time voting. A self-identified Republican, he is paying close attention to statewide races, especially the governor and attorney general races. Economic issues are key for him because he would like to stay in Mississippi after college.
Perhaps, a generational difference, Washington said he will rely more on the candidates’ social media messages than on the fair.
“Social media is more informative than the speeches here,” said Washington, who receives most of his news via social media.
Tammy Comfort said her key issue is bringing God back into the public sector, and she hopes that the speakers will keep him in their speeches.
“Mississippi needs God, and this is a place to see which politicians will put Him back into our schools, our government, our courts, and our homes,” the 68-year-old great-grandmother said.
An avid attendee of the Neshoba County Fair, she said the event helped her decide who to cast her vote for each cycle. This year, an off-election year, Comfort is interested in what the judges on the Mississippi Supreme Court will say. The judges, she said, are key to bringing God back to Mississippi, the buckle of the Bible Belt.
She and others like Eddie Saunders battled the heat under the blazing sun on Wednesday morning.
Saunders was waving a “Gipson for Governor” hand fan, saying he has not decided who to vote for yet but hopes that when he leaves the two-day event, he will have a good idea of who stands for his values. He wants a candidate who cares about transportation, economic development, and tax issues. A supporter of eliminating Mississippi’s income tax, Saunders wants candidates to build on erasing taxes in the state.
Daniel Tyson
