Horhn, Crisler Agree: No Offer to Endorse in Exchange for Paying Debts

The Jackson Free Press is reporting the response of both Sen. John Horhn and Councilman Marshand Crisler to the flyer that was stuck on my (and many others, I presume) car yesterday:

"I was approached by both campaigns and actively approached by the Crisler campaign," Horhn told the Jackson Free Press. "A number of offers were made by the Crisler campaign, some of which were quite lucrative. ... The fact of the matter is that the Crisler campaign fell all over itself trying to recruit me to their campaign with promises of elimination of my campaign debt and a few other things. And for them to suggest otherwise is absolutely ludicrous. They put the money on the table. The Johnson campaign has no money."

Also according to the JFP story, Councilman Crisler says the flyer is false, and claims he did not approve the flyer:

At a press conference this morning, mayoral candidate Marshand Crisler denied allegations, made in two new fliers supporting his candidacy, that his opponent Harvey Johnson bought the endorsement of state Sen. John Horhn, a former mayoral candidate. When asked about the fliers, Crisler first responded, "I denounce any negative politics and that one in particular." When the JFP's Adam Lynch and Donna Ladd asked directly whether Horhn had ever offered to sell his endorsement, Crisler replied, "No."

I'm glad to hear it. Now I want to know who was behind the flyers.

No Excuse for This Nonsense, Rep. Evans

In a post today on Y'all Politics, Alan Lange calls our attention to, and condemns, this print screed by Rep. Jim Evans regarding the upcoming Mayor's race:

Crisler and Horhn too costly for mayor

By Representative Jim Evans
April 30, 2009
Jackson Advocate

The Capitol Street Gang has decided who their new slaves will be for the May 5th Democratic primary. This gang, consisting of control-minded thugs like Leland Speed and Billy Mounger, as well as Dixie-rats (sic) like Kane Ditto and William Winter, have lined up behind the Minstrel Man, John Horhn, and that cartoon cop, better known as Marshand Crisler. The Capitol Street gang has invested over $600,000 in these two slaves to carry out the mission of turning the city over to them. . . . .

This low-down bunch of robber barrons [sic] and white supremacists cannot be given the keys to City Hall ever again. . . . .

The only thing standing in their way is a strong black person in the mayor’s office. A free person, a person that doesn’t act like a cuffe or a coon in front of the self-proclaimed elite. In order for Jackson to move ahead, we have to be in charge, not black folks that act as gatekeepers or yes-men to this evil power structure.

My two cents: I'm not sure which is worse: the racist diatribe against Sen. Horhn and Councilman Crisler, or the delusional notion that Kane Ditto or William Winter were or are "Dixie-rats" or "white supremacists." Note that this is a written, published piece that took time, effort and thought (if one can call it that), not a slip of the tongue at some heated campaign event or at a bar. Malice aforethought is presumed.

Make no mistake about it: this hit piece is part of a concerted strategy by the incumbent Mayor (Rep. Evans' wife is City Attorney) to blame Mayor Melton's problems on "The Man" and to suggest that the leading new faces for the job are "The Man's men." I have argued before that the Department of Justice's push to re-try Melton is fodder for this plan.

There is one way to repudiate this trash, and that's to throw the incumbent out.

Jackson's Groundhog Election Day? Opinion Poll By Neutral Consultant Shows H. Johnson, Crisler, and Horhn chasing Mayor Melton for Lead

My friend Brad Chism, President of the political consulting firm Zata3, has just released the results of a 500+ person poll in the Jackson mayoral race. Brad says that:

"We have several friends in the Jackson Mayor’s race but no candidates who are clients. We are intrigued by the dynamics of this race and have decided to do some survey work for public dissemination.

Wednesday night we conducted a random sample survey of 500 Jackson voter households. We asked about candidate preference and strength of support."

The main results:


Melton is in first place with 27% of total respondents. 35% of his supporters are "absolutely sure" they will vote for him.


H. Johnson is the lead challenger, with 20% of the total. 21% of his supporters are "absolutely sure."


Crisler is in a close third with 18% of total. 13% of his supporters are "absolutely sure."

Horhn is at a surprising 6%, with only 5% of his supporters saying they are "absolutely sure" they will vote for him.

Fair is right behind Horhn with 5% of the total; 6% of his supporters are "absolutely sure."

All Others split 11% of the total; 12% were undecided.


Brad gives us some brief observations:


"The race is very fluid. Based on this work and other surveys we have seen, at least four people are seriously in contention for the runoff."

"As Jere Nash observed recently, Frank Melton’s trial and the flap over his residency may have boosted his numbers considerably. (This survey occurred on Wednesday-- Melton hired a new police chief that day) ." Note: this is a point that several of us have already made. See http://jimcraigsworld.blogspot.com/2009/03/return-to-never-neverland.html


Brad continues:


"If the election were today, Melton would almost certainly be in the runoff. A rematch from 4 years ago is not implausible.


This will all change a lot when the candidates go up on TV and radio and hit the streets with canvassers.


Again, this is all fluid. For example, a few minutes ago Crisler got McMillan’s endorsement and we understand that fundraising is beginning to pick up for Crisler, Hohrn and Johnson.


About the survey. This sample of 500 voter phone households includes 70 completed surveys in Ward 1 and 65 in each of the other wards. This is a rough approximation of historical voter registration and turnout. We have not weighted the survey by voter frequency, gender or age. The pivot tables in the attached chart may be manipulated to see ward-by-ward results. We caution you not to draw too many conclusions by ward as these sample sizes are small. You can also adjust the pivot tables to see survey results by race.

Methodology. We used an interactive, automated call with keypad responses to record results. As the name suggests, our ZATAPULSE takes the pulse of the electorate. It is not an “MRI”. It is a useful tool for short surveys of this nature and has been used in more than 200 races across the country. We employ the same methodology as Survey USA or Rasmussen. Still, the tool has limits. We caution you that this race is very fluid and that each candidate is likely to have a more robust, internal poll. Nonetheless, we are confident that this is the most accurate, timely information that is publicly available.

About Zata3. Zata3 is a political consulting firm for Democratic candidates and progressive causes. Company President Brad Chism splits time between his Washington, DC and Jackson, MS offices. For each of the last three years, Zata3 had won more awards by the AAPC for its telephone voter contact programs than any other firm in America.

For more information, go to www.zata3.com"


The Takeaway Point From the Survey: So if the election were held today, the Democratic runoff would be between Mayor Melton and former Mayor Johnson. A "Groundhog Day" election . . . which Jackson may be doomed to repeat again and again?