John Caldwell, the Northern District transportation commissioner, has announced that he is not running for reelection, leaving one of north Mississippi’s top political positions open next year.
Caldwell didn’t say specifically why he’s not running again, but said it has nothing to do with his recent clashes with his commission and Mississippi Department of Transportation colleagues.
The mercurial Caldwell has clashed with MDOT Director Brad White and other commissioners recently. Caldwell has been known for generating news in the otherwise staid commission meetings by voting to hold up local road and bridge project money, demand minute details from MDOT employees in the middle of a meeting and arguing with White.
At the commission’s meeting on Sept. 8, Caldwell repeatedly screamed “bullshit” and “shut up” at White, Central District Commissioner Willie Simmons and Southern District Commissioner Charles Busby.
A portrait of Northern District Transportation Commissioner John Caldwell Credit: Courtesy: Mississippi Department of TransportationCaldwell, a Republican in his second term, first disclosed his decision not to seek reelection through his podcast “One for the Road.” He said it was time to “pass the torch” to a new person to represent north Mississippi on the three-member commission that oversees the Mississippi Department of Transportation.
“When it’s time, you’ll know,” Caldwell said. “Well, I know it’s time. I have a little over a year left on the second of two consecutive terms as your transportation commissioner. It’s been a great tour of duty, but it’s coming to a close.”
He told Mississippi Today that he had decided several months ago not to seek a third term because he felt like he was “getting to a point of diminishing returns” with his position.
The disagreement in the recent meeting involved efforts to install a traffic signal along a highway in DeSoto County. Caldwell said the signal was needed after a young woman died in a traffic incident along the road.
He blamed the agency’s bureaucracy and agency leaders choosing to fund other road projects as the reasons for not installing the signal sooner.
White said the agency decided to install a signal in the area, but local governments wanted a more decorative traffic pole beyond what MDOT typically offers. In instances like this, White said, the local government bears the extra cost.
“The old saying is the truth is kind of like a lion,” White said. “You don’t have to defend it. You just turn it out, and it’ll defend itself.”
Busby, a Republican, and Simmons, a Democrat, agreed with White and said Caldwell’s portrayal of that project was misleading.
This prompted Caldwell to accuse Simmons, who presides over the meetings as chairman, of violating the state’s open meetings law by calling other commissioners to discuss public business, something Simmons disputed.
But Caldwell told Mississippi Today the recent arguments with the commissioners and White were not a factor in his decision not to seek a third term. He even characterized Busby and Simmons as great commissioners and called White a “fine director” with a “great team” in place.
“This is one of the best jobs in state government,” Caldwell said.
Caldwell is a Marine combat veteran of Desert Storm and Iraqi Freedom. Before serving as a transportation commissioner, he was a DeSoto County supervisor.
The state’s Transportation Commission is composed of three elected commissioners, with each representing a different area of the state – southern, central and northern. The commission oversees the resources and operations of the Mississippi Department of Transportation.
The Transportation Commission’s Northern District stretches from the western to eastern borders of the state, DeSoto to Tishomingo counties, and from Alcorn County in the north to Winston County in the south, 33 counties in all.
Caldwell’s announcement will likely set off a scramble to fill his open seat. When former Commissioner Mike Tagert decided he was not running for reelection in the 2019 cycle, five Republicans competed to succeed him.
Already, state Sen. Chuck Younger, a Republican from Columbus, has announced he will run for the northern seat next year.
The regional offices of transportation commissioner are highly sought after because they can serve as a springboard to higher office, though Caldwell said he doesn’t intend to campaign for another elected office next cycle.
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