Newman announces leave from City of Tupelo to campaign

Photo: Tanner Newman makes his campaign announcement at Robins Field in Tupelo where President Franklin D. Roosevelt announced Tupelo as the nation’s First TVA City in 1934. (Courtesy photo) 

One of the candidates for the Republican nod in the race for Northern District Public Service Commissioner has announced that he is immediately taking a leave of absence from his current position. Tanner Newman is the City of Tupelo’s Director of Development Services, a post he has been at since July 2021. 

Newman released a statement Tuesday to say that he will take an unpaid leave of absence from that job to focus on his campaign.  

“I will take an unpaid leave of absence from my duties with the City of Tupelo beginning May 3,” said Newman. “This leave will allow me to focus solely on earning the votes and support of North Mississippians across all 33 counties as I seek to represent them on the Public Service Commission. I deeply appreciate Mayor Jordan and the City Council for their support and willingness to allow me to temporarily step aside to campaign for PSC.”

As Director of Development Services, Newman has reformed the city’s building regulatory department resulting in more accessible and efficient municipal services.

Newman said his campaign is focused on supporting stable power at low rates, expanding high-speed internet to every community, modernizing and securing the power grid, and stopping robocalls. Newman plans to promote conservative values to power North Mississippi.

The race for the Republican primary in August involves Newman, state Rep. Chris Brown (R-Nettleton), and Mandy Gunasekara, who is currently in a legal battle over having her name on the ballot or not due to a residency question.  There are no Democrats vying for the position, so the winner of the Republican primary will become the new PSC Commissioner, replacing Brandon Presley, who is running for governor.