Realistically, the question is: Can Democrats reduce the three-fifths of the advantage Republicans currently have in the House and Senate? This Friday is the deadline for qualifying to run this year. The state party has not provided a list of potential candidates, making it difficult to determine the quality and quantity of Democratic candidates for legislative seats. The list will not be made available to the Secretary-of-State’s office until Friday at 5 p.m. Bobby Moak, the state chair, has stated that Democrats will provide a wide range of qualified candidates to voters. “We are actively recruiting candidates in all parts of the state, including districts where we believe we can elect Democrats,” said Rep. David Baria, Bay St. Louis, who voiced opposition to the party’s decision to not provide updates via the internet on its candidate slate. On the other hand, Speaker Philip Gunn (R-Clinton) expressed optimism that Republicans would perform well during the November general election. Gunn stated that “We are paying attention” to all seats. Gunn stated that “we are evaluating every seat and trying to locate quality candidates.” At least 10 of the 122 members of the House are not running for re-election. They are either retiring or running for a new post. At least 11 of the 52 senators aren’t seeking re-election. Democrats looking to win seats could be affected by some of this turnover. Two Chickasaw County legislators, Sen. Russell Jolly (D-Houston) and Rep. Preston Sullivan (D-Okolona), are not running for re-election. These seats are where incumbents would have been considered heavy favorites. The Republicans believe they can win those seats in open races. In Senate District 5, in northeast Mississippi, where J.P. Wilemon has decided to retire, the same holds true. Maybe Sens. Perhaps the decision of Sens. Gray Tollison (R-Oxford) and Buck Clarke (R-Hollandale) not to run for re-election would provide Democrats with similar opportunities. Senator Tommy Gollott (R-Biloxi), who will be retiring after 52 years of service in the Senate, and the House. An important factor in determining who can run for legislative seats is a November opinion from Attorney General Jim Hood. It stated that rules that prevent public retirees (educators, state employees) from running for legislative positions while drawing their pension were inconsistent with state law. The Public Employees Retirement System Board of Trustees stated that it will change the regulation, provided it doesn’t conflict with federal tax law. Many education groups have stated that they plan to recruit former educators to run this year for the Legislature based on the anticipated changes to the rules. Leslie Fye, a member of the Mississippi Public Education PAC board, stated that some former educators are still considering whether or not they will run for the Legislature in this year’s election. This is despite the fact that the PERS Board had to make the decision late and there being some uncertainty as to whether the change will be implemented. She said that there are a few who will run. We will wait until March 1st (the qualifying deadline) to find out how many. She stated that potential candidates include both former teachers and administrators. The Mississippi Public Education PAC does not support any political party. It is possible that some retired workers will be able to run for the legislative seats in both political parties. Another pro-education group, the Parents Campaign, called the AG’s opinion that retired educators can serve in Congress and draw their pension “a gamechanger” for public education.