State Attorney General Jim Hood, the Democratic candidate for governor, said Thursday in Hattiesburg the recent Republican runoff between Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves and former state Chief Justice Bill Waller showed Mississippians believe it’s time for a change in government.
Reeves defeated Waller by a vote of 177,270 to 149,413 in the runoff this past Tuesday. However, Reeves actually led the three-man Republican Primary on Aug. 6 with more votes, 182,979. Waller gained 25,000 votes from the Primary to the runoff, with 124,707 in the primary.
Attorney General and candidate for Governor Jim Hood.
“What we’re doing is not working,” Hood told reporters at the DuBard School of Language Disorders on the University of Southern Mississippi campus. “It’s time for us to change and I think you saw that in the Republican Primary how a large number of those who voted in the primary voted for Justice Waller. A lot of them will cross over to us.”
Hood said both parties should work together to improve the state.
“I’m gonna be the governor for both Republicans and Democrats,” he said. “We need to bring each other together. We’ve got to work together to move our state forward. That’s one of the main issues I’m going to talk about in this race.”
Hood toured the DuBard School Thursday morning, talking and interacting with students and faculty while Director Dr. Missy Schraeder led the group of media and staff. Hood said he saw the value in the specific instruction.
“It is really interesting going around, seeing this school and how much help it brings to this area of South Mississippi and how fortunate we are to have this type of facility,” he said. “Some of the kids asked interesting questions, such as why I’m running for governor.”
“They’re the reason I’m running for governor because we’re so fortunate in the Hattiesburg area to have things like this. However, there are so many areas in our state that are lacking.”
Hood stressed the need to improve the state’s economy, comparing Mississippi’s economic growth to other states.
“When somebody says, ‘Oh, our economy is the best it’s ever been,’” he said. “That’s not true. Our economy in Mississippi has grown at a rate of 2 percent since 2009. Tennessee has grown at a rate of 24 percent, Arkansas 14 percent, and Alabama 11 percent. What we’re doing is not working.”
Hood took advantage of addressing the media in the DuBard School’s library.
Democratic candidate Jim Hood believes that the recent Republican runoff between Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves and former state Chief Justice Bill Waller shows that Mississippians believe it’s time for a change in government.
“This race for governor is going to be about roads, healthcare, and education as the primary issues in this race,” he said. “I think it’s appropriate that I’m here (in this section) with non-fiction. In this race, there is going to be a lot of fiction spread around, name-calling, labels, and things like that. The fact is there are issues that make a difference in our state and will make a difference in our state for a long time.”
Other issues Hood stressed during his Hattiesburg visit was kindergarten for 4-year-olds, expansion of Medicaid, teacher pay increase to the Southeastern average, and a cut in corporate tax breaks.