And they’re off! By Friday afternoon’s qualification deadline a field of nearly two-dozen men and women were ready to race.

And they want to get your attention and your support.

One by one they’ve lined up in an effort to lead the City of Natchez into the future.

Officially, the campaigns are just about to get under way, but in reality the races began months ago as issues stirred the candidates’ souls to the point of wanting to step forward and make a difference.

Every four years citizens raise their hands and seek the approval of their neighbors.

And in that process, a large field of candidates generally means that the citizens will have an even better opportunity to truly learn the candidates and how they’ll perform as our leaders.

Our hope is that during the various campaigns — for Natchez mayor and for six alderman spots — each candidate will promise to focus on the issues, not on personalities.

We hope they’ll vow to deal only in facts, not fiction, rumor or innuendo.

That may be difficult for some people to do.

It’s much easier to throw rocks at your opponent than build a solid foundation of support based on your own skills, ideas and vision.

But that’s exactly what the city needs right now. With such a diverse field of candidates, the race promises to be a good one and we’re excited by the discussions ahead on the issues that will shape our future.