It’s a long time until the qualifying dates for the mayor, city council, and school boards races this year: July 20-22.
Shreveport now has four announced major candidates for the mayoral seat: the incumbent Adrian Perkins, Jim Taliaferro, Tom Arceneaux, and Mario Chavez.
For those not satisfied with this menu there are other choices from current elected officials.
State Senator Greg Tarver is at the top of most lists. He has $277 thousand dollars in his campaign account that could be applied to a mayoral race.
The other most mentioned name is former Shreveport mayor Keith Hightower. It’s unlikely that Keith and Greg would butt heads in a race for mayor. Keith has over $138,000 in his campaign account.
State Representative Sam Jenkins could become a candidate. Sam's campaign war chest has almost $55,000. Jenkins previously ran for mayor.
Caddo Commissioner Steven Jackson has well over $28 thousand in his campaign fund. He is expected by most observers to seek a state office versus Shreveport mayor for the second time.
And rounding out the field, both literally and figurative, is former mayor Cedric Glover. Known to many as "Big G" Glover has less than $2600 in his campaign account.
Money is critical to any campaign. Both Perkins and Arceneaux have over $100 thousand in their campaign accounts.
Tarver and Hightower have the luxury of grading the field and making a late decision. Both have substantial name recognition and the ability to raise in short order big campaign funds.