As the 2019 Legislative Session is set to begin, two Senators have announced that they will not seek re-election in November.
Gray Tollison has represented District 9 (Lafayette & Panola) since 1996, he but recently announced that this session will be his last. Tollison didn’t state if he has any plans to re-enter the political realm in the future as he thanked the voters for their support throughout the course of his time in the legislature.
“I have decided not to seek re-election this year,” he said. “I greatly appreciate the support and trust the voters of Senate District 9 have placed in me over the past 6 elections. I am proud of being part of legislative efforts to improve education and the quality of life in my community and our state.”
Tollison currently serves as the Chairman of the Senate Education Committee. Lafayette County Supervisor and local attorney Kevin Frye (D) has already announced his intention to run to fill the vacant seat.
Senator Videt Carmichael, from District 33 (Clarke, Lauderdale), also made the decision to step aside and said that he’s ready to return home to spend time with his family.
“It’s time,” Carmichael simply stated. Senator Carmichael and his wife Donna have two children and six grandchildren.
In the Senate, Carmichael serves as the Chairman of the Senate Insurance Committee and is Vice Chairman of the Investigate State Offices Committee.
He has served in the Senate since 2000.
