Voters made good choices

By Staff
Nov. 9, 2003
Mississippi voters last Tuesday made wise and prudent choices for top positions in state government. The election of Haley Barbour and the re-election of Lt. Gov. Amy Tuck are encouraging signs. Hopefully, their terms will be marked by increasing cooperation between the executive and legislative branches instead of the infighting and backbiting that marked the Musgrove years.
Barbour, a skilled political strategist, ran an excellent campaign, albeit an expensive one. He will have raised and spent more money than anyone before him to win the governor's office. Then again defending yourself against such scurrilous allegations as the ones raised by the defeated incumbent does take a lot of money.
Tuck, who trounced Democrat Barbara Blackmon, was also the subject of repugnant allegations that her opponent raised and then refused to defend. Tuck's re-election victory with about 61 percent of the vote must have been especially sweet for the incumbent.
Any way you slice it, Blackmon ran an awful, racially-divisive campaign that never captured the voters' imagination. For her efforts, she got about 37 percent of the vote.
We congratulate Barbour and Tuck.
We also congratulate the freshest face on the Mississippi political scene, Republican Tate Reeves, who won the treasurer's office over Musgrove appointee Gary Anderson. Both Reeves and Anderson ran campaigns that were largely free of the rancor that underscored the others. Anderson is a competent financial professional, but did not benefit politically from his association with the Musgrove administration. On the other hand, Reeves, equally competent, did benefit from the huge Republican turnout.
The other new face in state government, Jim Hood as attorney general, benefited from the personal endorsement of his immediate predecessor, Mike Moore. A Democrat, the longtime district attorney has the experience to perform the duties of the office very well.
With about 870,000 votes cast, the turnout far exceeded pre-election estimates. Obviously, the Republicans turned out their voters, which helped propel Barbour, Tuck and Reeves to victory.
Now it's time for Barbour to begin shaping his administration, time for him to begin following through on his extensive "Haley's Plan." By following his lead, Mississippi can and will do better.