Voters will get a chance to hear three of the Democratic candidates for mayor of Vicksburg in a debate Thursday at the Kings Empowerment Center.

Attorney Paul Winfield, real estate agent and former North Ward Alderman Gertrude Young and NAACP Vicksburg Chapter President John Shorter all said they will attend the event, which begins at 6:30 p.m. and is sponsored by the Kings, Waltersville, Ford, Chickasaw Neighborhood Association. Warren Jones, president of the group, organized the debate, and said he will moderate questions.

“It will be a chance for everyone to provide their overall vision for the city; the issues they’re most concerned about and what their main focus will be for the city if elected,” said Jones.

Business owner Tommy Wright, the fourth candidate in the Democratic primary, said he will not participate. Instead, Wright said he has outlined his campaign platform on his Web site, www.tommywright.org.

“It’s a waste of time,” Wright said. “All they’re going to do is tell people what they think they want to hear.”

Incumbent Mayor Laurence Leyens, who has served two terms, filed as an independent, so he advances to the general election.

The four Democrats will be on city ballots May 5 and there will be a runoff May 19 unless one of the four gets more than half the votes cast. The party nominee then advances to face Leyens June 2. North Ward Alderman Michael Mayfield and South Ward Alderman Sid Beauman qualified for second and third terms, respectively, without opposition. New four-year terms begin July 1.

Shorter said he anticipates affordable housing to be among the hot topics, as well as the ongoing struggles residents are having in trying to return to homes flooded last spring.

He said he would like to find out where the other candidates stand on the Vicksburg Municipal Airport, in which Leyens’ administration has taken a renewed interest over the past year and has drawn up ambitious plans for over the next 20 years.

“I work on a commonsense basis according to the real needs of the citizens,” said Shorter. “If it’s feasible and realistic, then I’m for it. If it’s not, I don’t.”

An alderman for 12 years, Gertrude Young said she hopes to speak about bringing back some of the services in the Kings, Waltersville and Ford neighborhoods that have fallen to the wayside since she lost her spot to Mayfield in 2005.

“There used to be a health clinic down there, after-school activities for children and a safe house. I started all of those programs and created the (Kings Empowerment) center,” she said. “The people in those neighborhoods still feel like they’re stepchildren in this community and they feel like they’ve not been taken care of as well as others. They want to know what we are going to do to help improve their quality of life.” 

Winfield said he will focus on four key issues in his campaign: housing, economic development, adequate policing and leadership, or HEAL. The former board attorney for Warren County supervisors said he would also work to repair the strained relationship between city and county officials to benefit all citizens of Vicksburg and Warren County.

“I am the best candidate to bring about the changes we are going to need to make to provide a brighter future for our children,” he said. “I hope these sessions are productive so people can really see who the candidates are and what they can do for the community.”

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Contact Steve Sanoski at ssanoski@vicksburgpost.com.