November’s elections are fast approaching, and some Mississippi voters will find more than federal races on the ballot.
In House District 77, which spans parts of Rankin and Simpson counties, voters will choose a successor for Rep. Price Wallace, who died this summer. Following the Republican lawmaker’s death, Gov. Tate Reeves called a special election to fill the vacant seat.
Four candidates have qualified to run. Here’s what to know about each ahead of Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 3.
Mississippi House District 77 candidates
The candidates vying for the District 77 seat are Christopher Dunn, Dianne McNair-Gaddis, Melissa Sullivan, and Craig Williams.
Dunn worked as a community banker for more than two decades before becoming the chief financial officer of Vestra Revenue Cycle Management, a company that aims to strengthen rural healthcare.
“Now, I am asking for the opportunity to serve District 77,” Dunn wrote in a July 22 Facebook post. “This campaign is about faith, family, fiscal responsibility, and common-sense leadership. It is about protecting our conservative values, supporting local businesses, strengthening rural healthcare, and ensuring Mississippi remains the best place to live, work, and raise a family.”
McNair-Gaddis is the founder and CEO of 3 Girls Trucking Academy in Magee, where she trains Mississippians to drive large commercial trucks. She announced her campaign on Aug. 13 and says she will support small-business growth, food security, and better roads.
“I have spent more than 30 years working, serving, giving, and helping people in our community,” McNair-Gaddis said in the announcement. “When families were in need, we provided truckloads of food, milk, bread, and other necessities right from 3 Girls Trucking Academy. I have supported our young people, schools, sports, and community programs. Serving people has always been a part of my life.”
On June 12, Sullivan announced her intentions to run for the District 77 seat. Sullivan is a registered respiratory therapist at Simpson General Hospital, where she has worked for nearly 25 years, and the founder and executive director of The Center for Pregnancy Choices of Simpson County.
“Serving others has been the thread that runs through every season of my life — through healthcare, through ministry, through my commitment to families, and through my faith,” Sullivan wrote in a Facebook post. “It is that same heart for service that leads me to this moment.”
The last candidate on the ballot to represent Rankin and Simpson counties is Williams, owner of Wildcat Creek Shooting Preserve in Mendenhall. If elected, the fourth-generation farmer will focus on public safety education, economic growth, and infrastructure.
“I’ve spent my life serving this community, raising a family here, working here, and listening to the people who call District 77 home,” Williams wrote in a Sept. 8 Facebook post. “If I’m given the opportunity to represent our home and our communities…that same commitment to service will guide every decision I make.”
What to know before heading to the polls
In-person absentee voting remains open until Oct. 31, but Mississippians who will be voting on Election Day are asked to visit their local polling location between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3.
READ MORE: What to know about Mississippi’s federal elections on Nov. 3
Mississippi voters must present an acceptable form of photo identification when voting in person, including a Mississippi driver’s license, U.S. passport, voter identification card, student identification card, and certain government-issued identification cards, among others.
Voters who do not have an acceptable form of photo ID may cast an affidavit ballot and have an opportunity to provide acceptable identification after Election Day.