Scott Conger unveils campaign office, touts ‘transparency, efficiency, and inclusion’

Mayor Scott Conger unveiled the downtown headquarters for his mayoral campaign Tuesday night, surrounded by supporters. 

The office is located at 112 N. Liberty St., across the street from City Hall. 

This is the former United Way of West Tennessee President/CEO’s second campaign for mayor. He previously served as city council member for District 5. His grandfather, Bob Conger, was mayor of Jackson for 22 years. 

According to his campaign website, he is running on the premise of “transparency, efficiency, and inclusion.”

“We have a lot of things going on in Jackson,” Conger said in a short speech before the ribbon cutting. “It feels like the first two years we had to crank the hose up. We couldn’t really do anything with the pandemic. Now we get to open the hose and let the water flow. We have a lot of great momentum, a lot of great things happening. I’m excited to be a part of it, play a small role in it.”

The first two years of his term, Conger’s agenda was put on pause because of the Covid-19 pandemic. He also stepped in when the city was almost $80 million in debt. In an interview after the ribbon cutting, Conger touted his work to reduce debt. 

“We've reduced the debt from $76 million to $43 million,” Conger said. “At the end of this year, we've increased our fund balance from $16 million to $37 million. We're doing the things now like paving streets, purchasing property, looking at strategic investment, strategic planning, we're paying for those things.”

Conger pointed to the land Georgia-Pacific is expected to build their Dixie plant on. The city had to borrow $2.3 million to buy that property in 2016. This year, the city is expected to buy the Jackson Plaza land for $4 million from the fund balance. 

However, his term as mayor has not been without criticism. The handling of the pandemic brought mistrust to local officials, as well as controversy of Jackson Pride’s drag show in October of last year. 

“I didn’t do anything about the drag show. I followed the law. It’s my job. It’s not my job to have my personal beliefs and personal opinions inserted into things. It's my job to serve all people to follow the law to make sure that the law is upheld. And we did that,” Conger said.

Conger says he is excited to take part in the shared vision for Jackson, and proud that Jackson is competing on a national level for industry and growth. 

“I think Jackson is a place for everyone. We're the ‘Hub City’ for a reason,” Conger said.

Conger is looking for volunteers for his campaign. You can find more information about his campaign, platform, and volunteer opportunities at scottconger.com. The City of Jackson Municipal Election is May 2, 2023. The last day to qualify as a candidate for Mayor or City Council is February 16, 2023.