Northern District Commissioner John Caldwell
- The Republican incumbent said as the Northern District Commissioner he is “reaching a point of diminishing returns.”
Northern District Transportation Commissioner John Caldwell announced this week that he would not be seeking a third term in 2027.
On his “One for the Road” podcast shared on Facebook, the Republican incumbent said as the Northern District Commissioner he is “reaching a point of diminishing returns.”
Caldwell won the commissioner’s seat in 2019, defeating Geoffrey Yost in a Republican Primary runoff before besting Democrat nominee Joe Grist by 27 points in the General Election. He then went on to run unopposed in 2023 to win re-election.
Now, Caldwell says it is time to pass the torch.,
“I’ve been asked if I’m not running for re-election in order to run for something else. Maybe I should join all of my friends that are jumping into the governor’s race,” Caldwell said jokingly. “How could I even differentiate myself from that crowd of highly qualified Republicans? I wouldn’t be the youngest. I wouldn’t be the smartest. I wouldn’t be prettiest. I wouldn’t be the most conservative. I wouldn’t even be the richest. Not much left for me but to hope to rise a bit from the bottom of the pack.”
Caldwell said he loves his constituents and has loved his work as the Northern District Commissioner.
“I’ve always said, if you’re not having fun, you’re doing it wrong. Well, I’m still having fun but it’s still time to pass the torch,” he added. “Good luck to whoever steps out and puts their name in the hat to step into this wonderful position.”
In recent weeks, Caldwell has clashed with MDOT executive director Brad White over funding and the installation of a stop light in Horn Lake.
READ MORE: Transportation commissioner, MDOT executive director clash over funding, Horn Lake stop light
A disagreement in the telling of events between the two led to the raising of voices during last Tuesday’s commission meeting which caused Commission chairman Willie Simmons (D) to remind Caldwell that all meetings are public as he called for professionalism amongst the commission.
