Our area’s political landscape is poised to change dramatically next week as new office holders are sworn into their respective positions.

The question many voters — including yours truly — are asking is: Will changing faces actually change our government?

It’s easy for the cynical among us to simply throw up our hands and discount it as inevitable that government has always been screwed up and inefficient and thus will always be that way as well.

While some truth does exist in that statement, when we as a society completely wash our hands of government, the American experiment is over.

Personally, my belief is that we’re not so far down the hole yet that we cannot claw our way back out. But it starts with the people holding their representatives accountable for their actions.

Natchez, Vidalia and Ferriday will all have new mayors next week, including two that are relative rookies to government. Their naivety is really an asset. They simply won’t have the old, tired history of “we’ve always done it that way” in the back of their heads. They might actually consider a new, fresh idea.

Vidalia residents essentially tossed out their longtime mayor and the majority of the aldermen, particularly those who had mostly supported all of the former mayor’s agenda without much questioning. Such following along has in one way built up Vidalia with the construction of a number of large public projects. But it’s also indebted the taxpayers perhaps more than they were comfortable, thus the change in direction at the polls.

In Natchez, not only does the city have a new mayor — and one that seems to possess a uniting form of leadership — but also several new aldermen as well.

Natchez’s board of aldermen shifts to one that is led by more members whose skin is black than who are white. That shouldn’t matter, but since it’s another racial “first” it’s worth noting.

While old-guard whites may fear the change, it’s probably long overdue since Natchez’s racial make-up has been predominantly black for many, many years.

With all the changes in store, one has to wonder how will Natchez look in another four years.

For Natchez residents, rebuilding the faith in the city’s finances will take time, and while it’s critical to get that in order, the financial fix-up should be pretty quick.

Bigger picture items will take a little more time, but could have far reaching results.

Imagine what would happen if transparency in city government ultimately led to a less bloated, more efficient city.

Ideally, in four years, we’d see a city government that not only thinks about its role differently — perhaps less focused on monument building and more focused on improving the quality of life for residents — but also works with other government entities logically.

For decades, city and county leaders have squabbled and fussed over seemingly simple things, such as the fire protection agreement.

In more recent years, more cooperation has been seen in some areas, but yet largely the two still work separately most of the time.

With the new Natchez mayor having worked a long stint as a county supervisor and one of the new county supervisors having worked for many years as a city alderman, perhaps never before has Natchez’s elected leadership been as equipped to cross State Street and work together.

Hopefully, the city and county can soon sit down and work together to find more and more ways they can work together for the betterment of the public’s interest.

Consolidating city and county services just makes sense. Hopefully, the change in leadership will cause in a change in the status quo.

 

Kevin Cooper is publisher of The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached at 601-445-3539 or kevin.cooper@natchezdemocrat.com.