CENTREVILLE &045; Since emerging from a field of four Democrats to win Mississippi’s Senate District 38 seat in a 1992 special election, Natchez native Robert L. Johnson III has enjoyed smooth sailing in political races.

As an incumbent, Johnson garnered a whopping 70 percent of the vote to defeat Republican James Alex Ventress in 1995 and was unopposed in 1999.

But in Tuesday’s Democratic primary election, Johnson will again face a challenge from within his own party &045; this time from Magnolia Alderman Kelvin Butler.

A union member and a 25-year employee at a Brookhaven manufacturing plant, Butler has served on Magnolia’s Board of Aldermen for 12 years.

Johnson is married, while Butler’s wife of 23 years died in 2001 following a fight with breast cancer. Both candidates have three children.

Butler, 47, holds an associate degree in business administration. Johnson, 44, is a trial attorney.

Johnson and Butler hail from opposite ends of the mostly rural district, which erupts from two separate areas of Walthall County and sprawls westward along the Louisiana border, taking in most of Pike County, southern portions of Amite County and all of Wilkinson County before winding northward along the Mississippi River to include parts of Adams County and Natchez.

This week, both men talked about three important issues in the District 38 race.

Jobs/Economy

With the closings of the Johns-Manville plant and the International Paper mill in Natchez and the shutdown of Georgia-Pacific’s Gloster plywood mill, more 1,000 manufacturing jobs vanished in southwest Mississippi during the past year.

Both candidates mentioned the importance of a regional approach to restoring the area’s economy.

&uot;We’ve got to get everybody on the same page and do a good job of selling ourselves. Being an alderman for 12 years, I’ve learned a lot about local government and how to push your area,&uot; Butler said.

The three-term councilman said a Florida company will soon locate an operation in Magnolia employing 50 to 75 workers.

&uot;We agreed to allow this company to use our old National Guard Armory. You have to be able to offer incentives,&uot; Bulter said.

Johnson said even before the plants started closing, he helped pass legislation to improve the area’s highway infrastructure.

He said four-laning projects along U.S. 61 and Mississippi 24 are invaluable to attracting new business and industry to the district.

&uot;We’ve seen the benefits in Northeast Mississippi … in Tupelo and the Golden Triangle area. Even when the economy is down, those areas seem to do better,&uot; Johnson said.

Johnson said in addition to traditional manufacturing jobs, southwest Mississippi also needs to focus on attracting more cottage industries.

&uot;There are a lot of dynamics that we don’t present as a package well enough,&uot; he said.

Tort Reform

Despite passage of the Medical Malpractice Insurance Availability Act last year, many Mississippians believe more tort reform is needed to protect health care providers and small businesses from the expense of defending frivolous lawsuits.

Butler said dealing with his wife’s illness made him realize the importance of accessible and affordable health care.

&uot;When my wife was ill, it was good to know that we had good doctors, and we have to make sure we keep our doctors.

We’ve got to get rid of these frivolous lawsuits,&uot; Butler said.

He said he would consider establishing a screening committee composed of physicians, lawyers and other professionals to help identify frivolous suits before they go to court.

Johnson said he voted for last year’s medical malpractice measure to prevent doctors from leaving the state, but he has some reservations about other aspects of tort reform, such as capping damage awards.

&uot;There has not been one case in Mississippi where a doctor has been found liable for prescribing medications. The problem is in defending the large number of lawsuits that are filed, and caps will not solve that,&uot; Johnson said.

Johnson also said doctors who treat a patient in one county should not find themselves later defending a lawsuit from that patient in another jurisdiction.

He suggested that jurors may need to be pooled on a regional basis to ensure impartial verdicts.

Education

Johnson sees a direct connection between education and economic growth.

&uot;We have not invested enough in education.

CEOs want to see a well-trained and educated workforce when they look at an area to locate in,&uot; Johnson said.

Mississippi’s Educational Enhancement Program will eventually devote $330 million to improving teacher pay and allow rural districts with smaller tax bases to compete for good teachers by offering comparable salaries, Johnson said.

If elected, Butler has pledged to help make education the number one priority in the Legislature.

&uot;We’ve got to pay our teachers well, but we must also hold them responsible for doing a good job,&uot; he said.