Editor’s note: The responses to the questions posed to each of the candidates vying for nominations in their party primaries were provided by the candidates. The responses have not been edited. We appreciate the candidates for taking the time to participate in this survey and providing their responses in a timely fashion.

Shawn Jackson

• Hometown and how long you have lived in Warren County. If you’re a lifelong resident of Warren County please include that.

My hometown is Vicksburg, MS. I was born and raised here, left for school, college and work and returned 10 years ago.

•  Highest education level achieved and/or technical certification. Also include any degrees earned and institutions where those degrees and/or certifications were earned.

I have a Bachelor’s of Science in Labor Economics and Negotiations from Cornell University located in Ithaca, New York.

•  In your opinion, what is the number one issue facing your district? Why do you believe that issue is a top priority?

I believe the number one issue for our district is getting our residents prepared for jobs.  For the past 10 years, I’ve owned a company that trains employees in Warren County and around the state and I know that if our people have the proper skills, they can get jobs, keep jobs and get paid more in order to provide for themselves and their families.

•  As supervisor, what have you done to address issues in your district? If running for office, what would you do as supervisor to address those issues?

A house divided will not stand. For too long, the Warren County Board of Supervisors and the City have not worked together on key issues. As the Supervisor for District 3, I would work to ensure we have a more cooperative working relationship, because unlike other districts, nearly all District 3 residents are in the city, which means nearly all of our people have to rely on the City as well as the County. When we work together, we provide a unified voice and efforts to bring more jobs, better education and retain our talent.

•  As a whole how would you grade the current Board of Supervisors’ performance? Be specific as to those things you believe the board has done well and those things that could have been done better. If you’re running for office, please grade the current board overall and be specific in those areas they have done well at, need to do better.

It’s difficult to give an overall grade because the needs of the County have dramatically changed in the past 23 years since the current Supervisor of District 3 was elected. What worked then does not work now. We need new skillsets and new energy to benefit our County. The Board has done well at not losing money, but not so well at increasing the money at its disposal. They can do better at building a bigger tax payer base that leads to more funds that allows us to better support education, business growth and maintaining infrastructure.

•  As a county overall, what do you believe the biggest challenge facing the county will be over the next four years and what do you believe you can do to meet those challenges if you are elected or re-elected?

I believe the biggest challenge is retaining our talent and attracting new talent. We’re the only County in Mississippi with amazing resources that has a problem keeping it’s own people. Residents of Madison, Dallas, and Atlanta, don’t just pick up and move here. Whereas, a lot of our best and brightest have relocated to those places. I will work with other officials and leaders to determine what’s needed to have Warren County be the first choice for our own people. And what works to keep our people will work to attract new talent.