Local attorney W. Briggs Hopson III entered the race to succeed Sen. Mike Chaney in District 23 late Friday, adding more interest to a race that a week ago seemed a safe hold-on for the incumbent.

&#8220I want to improve education in the state of Mississippi,” said Hopson by cell phone Friday afternoon after he made his first foray into politics official by filing qualifying papers with the Secretary of State’s Office.

The 41-year-old Vicksburg native and partner with the Teller Chaney Hassell & Hopson law firm on Cherry Street will be on Democratic primary ballots Aug. 7. If he wins, his opponent could be 73-year-old Rep. Chester Masterson, R-Vicksburg, who announced Wednesday he will seek the seat vacated by Chaney.

Hopson said he has not had a strong affiliation with either major party prior to his decision to run, despite his qualification as a Democrat. He declined to draw comparisons or contrasts with his prospective opponent in the race.

&#8220I’ve been planning to run for a while,” said Hopson. &#8220But, Chester is a good friend for many years. We’ve had some disagreements on philosophy, but he is a fine person.”

In addition to education, Hopson said another issue he will stress in the campaign will be improving access to health care in rural areas.

The Senate’s 52 members are in session through the end of this month. District 23 represents all of Warren and Issaquena counties and southwestern Yazoo County.

For his part, Masterson has said he is ready to &#8220hit the streets” campaigning once qualifying ends March 1. Chaney, 63, has said he has no desire to re-enter politics on the local or state level.

As for local races for the House of Representatives, the only candidate who has filed for District 56 is Republican businessman Alex Monsour. It includes the southern half of Warren County and all of Issaquena and Sharkey counties.

The area’s senior delegate to the Legislature, Rep. George Flaggs, D-Vicksburg, is running for a fifth term and has not drawn any opposition. He also has said he will stay in the race and not enter any state-level office.

All primary winners will advance to the general election Nov. 6.