By Billy Davis

The run-off candidates for Northern District transportation commissioner made stops in Batesville this week, and on the same day.

John Caldwell of Hernando and Mike Tagert of Starkville are competing to finish the term of late Commissioner Bill Minor. The runoff is Tuesday, February 1.

The Northern District post is one of three on the state commission that oversees the Miss. Department of Transportation and selects its executive director.

Tagert spent an hour at  Batesville Civic Center Wednesday morning, where locals told him about the Highway 6 bypass, and four-laning the highway to Clarksdale.

The bypass and four-laning are both part of a MDOT project still in its early stages.

The sprinkling of attendees included Panola Partnership CEO Sonny Simmons, Batesville Alderman Stan Harrison, and County Administrator Kelley Magee, among others.

Batesville insurance agent Ray Poole was among several to mention the four-laning project, telling Tagert that its long-awaited completion would boost economic development in North Mississippi. 

TVEPA communications manager Marlin Williams said he attended to hear Tagert link transportation issues with economic development.  

“We are interested because of economic development,” Williams told The Panolian.

Caldwell attended an invitation-only meet-and-greet event Wednesday evening at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Larry Pratt in Batesville.

Caldwell and Tagert finished first and second respectively in a seven-way race that included State Rep. Warner McBride of Batesville.

McBride, who chairs the House Transportation Committee, said he has not endorsed either candidate in the race.

 Asked what he hoped the new commissioner would focus on, McBride also said the four-laning of Highway 6 from Batesville to Clarksdale should be a “priority project” in North Mississippi.

“A four-lane highway from Tupelo to Clarksdale — that’s important for growth and economic development for all of North Mississippi,” McBride said.

“In the legislature, it’s a priority project,” McBride continued. “We need somebody at MDOT that makes it a priority for them.”

Caldwell, 49, presently serves as transportation director for the DeSoto County School District. He formerly served two terms as a county supervisor in DeSoto County.

He has a bachelor’s degree from Arkansas State University.

Caldwell was running for Northern District transportation commissioner in 2003 when he was called up for active duty in Operation Desert Storm. He is an officer in the U.S. Marine Reserves.

Running as a Republican candidate, Caldwell lost to Minor, a Democrat, in the General Election.

Tagert, 40, serves as administrator for the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Development Authority. He formerly served as president of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Development Council.

He has a bachelor’s degree from Millsaps and a master of public policy and public administration from Mississippi State.

Both Caldwell and Tagert are running as Republican candidates, which means whoever wins the runoff will add a second Republican to the three-person commission.

Dick Hall currently serves as the sole Republican on the commission, where he has had well-publicized political battles with fellow commissioner Wayne Brown and MDOT executive director Butch Brown.

“Both of the candidates, we feel, are qualified for this position,” said Kay Cobb, who heads Tea Party Oxford, a branch of the conservative tea party movement.

Tea Party Oxford hosted a public forum on January 22 with Caldwell and Tagert, and afterward endorsed Caldwell for the commissioner post.

Cobb said an endorsement of either candidate was not a certainty, and the nod for Caldwell came after Tea Party Oxford interviewed both candidates and weighed their backgrounds and experiences.

A formal letter to the candidates stated that Tea Party Oxford evaluated their educational background, work experiences, church and civic involvement, and military background.

The candidates’ answers to a Tea Party Oxford questionnaire, and to audience members at the forum, were also considered.

Tea Party Oxford members also contacted people in the candidates’ home districts to seek input about their work history and reputation in the community.

Cobb said Tea Party Oxford, which endorses term limits, was impressed to learn that Caldwell stepped down after two terms as county supervisor — “He term-limited himself,” she said.

Cobb said Caldwell’s longtime service in the U.S. Marines Reserves was also admirable. He joined in 1981 and holds the rank of colonel today. 

Tagert also served in the U.S. Marine Reserves, from 1988 to 1994.