Mississippi Public Service Commission election, 2023 (August 8 Northern District Republican primary)

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← 2019
Mississippi Public Service Commission
Election details
Filing deadline: February 1, 2023
Primary: August 8, 2023 Primary runoff: August 29, 2023 General: November 7, 2023 General runoff: November 28, 2023 Pre-election incumbent(s): Brent Bailey (Republican) (Central District) Brandon Presley (Democratic) (Northern District) Dane Maxwell (Republican) (Southern District)
How to vote
Poll times: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voting in Mississippi
Ballotpedia analysis
Federal and state primary competitiveness State executive elections in 2023 Impact of term limits in 2023 State government trifectas State government triplexes Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2023
Mississippi executive elections
Governor Lieutenant Governor Attorney General Secretary of State Treasurer Auditor Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Commissioner of Insurance Public Service Commission (3 seats) Transportation Commission (3 seats)

Chris Brown defeated Tanner Newman in the August 8, 2023, Republican primary for the Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District. No Democrat filed to run in the district, so Brown was guaranteed to win the general election on Nov. 7. Incumbent Brandon Presley (D) ran for governor of Mississippi.

The Mississippi Public Service Commission is a three-member executive board that regulates telecommunications, electric, gas, water, and sewer utilities in Mississippi. At the time of the election, Presley was the only Democrat on the commission. The other two members were Republicans. Public service commissioners are elected to four-year terms with no term limits.

According to DeSoto County News' Bob Bakken, "It's the first time, in three election cycles, that a new commissioner will be elected and a Republican is assured of winning the seat."

At the time of the primary, Brown was a business owner who had served in the Mississippi House of Representatives since 2012. Newman was the Director of Development Services for the City of Tupelo and a former staffer for U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.).

Both candidates listed lowering utility rates, ending rolling blackouts, eliminating robocalls, and expanding broadband access as their top priorities.

Brown said "Washington Democrats [had] pushed policies that kill jobs, destroy American energy independence, and crush middle-class families.” He said that, if elected, he would “stand up to unconstitutional mandates from these 'climate activist' elites."

Newman said he would work across the aisle to find funding for infrastructure projects. "I believe North Mississippi has a long history of putting aside partisan politics and working together to find common sense solutions that keep Mississippi moving forward," Newman said.

The Mississippi Freedom Caucus and the group Veterans for Trump endorsed Brown. The Mississippi Association of REALTORS Political Action Committee and the Home Builders Association of Mississippi BuildPAC endorsed Newman.

Mississippi is one of a handful of states that hold off-year elections, that is, elections that take place in years in which there are no presidential or midterm elections. In Mississippi's case, elections are held in the year after a midterm and before a presidential election; thus, 2019, 2023, and 2027 are all public service commissioner election years.

The filing deadline for this election was February 1, 2023.

This page focuses on the Republican Party primary for the Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District. For information on the Mississippi Public Service Commission 2023 general election, see the following page:

• Mississippi Public Service Commission election, 2023

De'Keither Stamps won election in the general election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District.

Chris Brown won election in the general election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District.

Nelson Carr won election in the general election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District.

Candidates and election results

Northern District

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District

Chris Brown defeated Tanner Newman in the Republican primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District on August 8, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chris Brown	61.3	78,272
		Tanner Newman	38.7	49,472

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 127,744
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Mandy Gunasekara (R)

Voting information

See also: Voting in Mississippi

Election information in Mississippi: Aug. 8, 2023, election.

What was the voter registration deadline?

• In-person: July 10, 2023
• By mail: Postmarked by July 10, 2023
• Online: N/A

Was absentee/mail-in voting available to all voters?

No

What was the absentee/mail-in ballot request deadline?

• In-person: N/A
• By mail: N/A by N/A
• Online: N/A

What was the absentee/mail-in ballot return deadline?

• In-person: Aug. 8, 2023
• By mail: Postmarked by Aug. 8, 2023

Was early voting available to all voters?

N/A

What were the early voting start and end dates?

N/A to N/A

Were all voters required to present ID at the polls? If so, was a photo or non-photo ID required?

Photo ID

When were polls open on Election Day?

7:00 AM - 7:00 PM (CST)

About the office

The Mississippi Public Service Commission is a three-member executive board that regulates telecommunications, electric, gas, water, and sewer utilities in Mississippi. The commission was established in 1884. Public service commissioners are elected to four-year terms with no term limits.

In all 50 states, the public service commission is a multi-member board responsible for the regulation of utilities. Most states' commissions have three seats, though some states have as many as seven seats. Public service commissioners are elected in 10 states and appointed in the other 40. Of those states that appoint public service commissioners, all but Virginia and South Carolina give the power of appointment to the governor.

Current officeholders

The table below shows the current members of the Mississippi Public Service Commission.

Office	Name	Party
Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District	De'Keither Stamps	Democratic
Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District	Chris Brown	Republican
Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District	Nelson Carr	Republican

Candidate comparison

Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.

Chris Brown

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: 

Mississippi House of Representatives - District 20 (Assumed office: 2012)

Biography:  Brown attended Northeast Mississippi Community College and the University of Memphis. A business owner, Brown served as president of Aberdeen RV Center, Inc. and as the principal of Adventure Campers USA, BRS Offroad North America, and Rocket RV. He has been a member of Gideon’s International, the Monroe County Chamber of Commerce, and the Mississippi Republican Executive Committee.

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Key Messages

The following key messages were curated by Ballotpedia staff. For more on how we identify key messages, click here.

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Brown said he would "advocate to keep the cost of utilities low for our Mississippi families and businesses."

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If elected, Brown said he "will fight to expand rural broadband through traditional and creative solutions." 

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Brown said he would fight for values such as "protecting life, expanding our Second Amendment, cutting taxes, and defending freedom."

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Show sources

Sources: Chris Brown, "HOW WILL I EVALUATE ISSUES AS YOUR PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSIONER?," accessed July 19, 2023; Mississippi House of Representatives, "Chris Brown," accessed July 19, 2023; LinkedIn, "Chris Brown," accessed July 19, 2023

This information was current as of the candidate's run for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District in 2023.

Tanner Newman

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: None

Submitted Biography:  "Director of Development Services for City of Tupelo. Former Constituent Liaison for U.S. Senate."

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Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.

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Eliminate Robocalls

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End Rolling Blackouts

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Continue Broadband Expansion

This information was current as of the candidate's run for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District in 2023.

Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses

Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. The section below shows responses from candidates in this race who completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Survey responses from candidates in this race

Click on a candidate's name to visit their Ballotpedia page.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Expand all | Collapse all

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Tanner Newman (R)

Eliminate Robocalls

End Rolling Blackouts

Continue Broadband Expansion

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Tanner Newman (R)

Rural access to fair and affordable utilities.

What qualities does this office possess that makes it a unique and important part of the state government and legal system?

Tanner Newman (R)

MS

Campaign ads

Chris Brown

Click on the links below to view Chris Brown's ads:

Facebook: here, here, and here.

Tanner Newman

View more ads here:

• Facebook

Election competitiveness

Polls

See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls

We provide results for polls that are included in polling aggregation from FiveThirtyEight and RealClearPolitics, when available. No polls were available for this election. To notify us of polls published in this election, please email us.

Election spending

Campaign finance

Candidates in this election submitted campaign finance reports to the Office of the Mississippi Secretary of State.
Click here to access those reports.

Satellite spending

Satellite spending describes political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns; that is, any political expenditures made by groups or individuals that are not directly affiliated with a candidate. This includes spending by political party committees, super PACs, trade associations, and 501(c)(4) nonprofit groups.

If available, this section includes links to online resources tracking satellite spending in this election. To notify us of a resource to add, email us.

Election history

2019

See also: Mississippi Public Service Commission election, 2019

General election

General election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District

Incumbent Brandon Presley won election in the general election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District on November 5, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brandon Presley (D)	100.0	222,167

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 222,167
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District

Incumbent Brandon Presley advanced from the Democratic primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District on August 6, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brandon Presley	100.0	95,783

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 95,783
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2015

See also: Mississippi Public Service Commission election, 2015

There was a regularly scheduled election for all three seats on the commission in 2015. Lynn Posey (R), Brandon Presley (D) and Steve Renfroe were eligible for re-election. The primary election was occurred on August 4, 2015, with the general election on November 3, 2015.

Northern District

Mississippi Public Service Commission, Northern District, 2015
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Brandon Presley Incumbent	60.7%	146,518
	Republican	Mike Maynard	39.3%	94,793
Total Votes				241,311
Election results via Mississippi Secretary of State

2023 battleground elections

See also: Battlegrounds

This election was a battleground race. Other 2023 battleground elections included:

• Mayoral election in Wichita, Kansas (2023)
• Mayoral election in Wichita, Kansas (August 1, 2023, primary election)
• New Hampshire House of Representatives District Rockingham 1 special election, 2023

External links

• Search Google News for this topic
• Mississippi public service commissioner official website

Footnotes

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