CORRIDOR CHRONICLE
Opinion
Smith the Mingo choice
In times of trouble, republics cry out for strong leadership. Strong leaders are hard to find.
But Mingo County has benefited from just this kind of leadership and voters should continue to take advantage of it.
We recommend Greg “Hootie” Smith for another term as county commissioner. In desperate economic times, Smith has helped keep the county afloat financially. His leadership, combined with fell Commissioner Diann Hannah, is a winning proposition for Mingo. He deserves the Democrat nomination.
We have no problems with his primary opponent, Johnny Nick Hager. But Smith’s outstanding record of performance deserves another term.
Republican Gavin Smith is unopposed for that nomination.
There are two candidates for County Clerk; one Republican and one Democrat. The Democrat, Yogi Croaff nearly unseated legendary Big Jim Hatfield two years ago. He ran an honorable and impressive campaign then and now. Republican Russell Deskins has a solid reputation for hard work, truth and honesty. Both deserve the support of their parties.
Incumbent Democrat Duke Jewell is unopposed for nomination as Prosecutor. Brock Mounts is the sole GOP candidate. They deserve their party’s nomination.
In a separate editorial, we endorsed Democrat Earl Spence and Republican Ernest Sammons for Sheriff.
Democrat Assessor Ramona Mahon is unopposed. Republicans should find a qualified candidate.
For the three Magistrate seats, two are unopposed. In Division One, we recommend incumbent Jim Harvey. We commend the two incumbents in Two and Three, David Justice and Donald Sansom. All three have performed superbly. There is equal justice in Mingo Magistrate and Family Court, if not on the next level. But that’s an issue for another election. The incumbent Magistrates deserve re-election.