District 5 Commission Candidate Packy Mitchell Drops Republican Party

August 20, 2011

Escambia County Commission District 5 candidate Packy Mitchell is no longer running as a Republican.

As of Friday, Mitchell is now running as an independent for the seat currently held by Kevin White of Molino.

Mitchell, a resident of  Neal Road inCantonment,  ran unsuccessfully for the seat in 2008, finishing second among Republican candidates.

White has announced that he is running again as Republican. Republicans Sam Archer and Jim Taylor of Cantonment and Dennis Wiggins of Century, who is running with no party affiliation, have also prefiled.

Comments

33 Responses to “District 5 Commission Candidate Packy Mitchell Drops Republican Party”

  1. MICHAEL WEAVER on August 30th, 2011 4:07 am

    BEST OF LUCK TO ALL THAT ARE RUNNING. CHOICE IS A GOOD THING. ME….I’M GOING FOR KEVIN WHITE. I THINK HE IS A GOOD PERSON AND THE BEST ONE FOR THE JOB. NO MATTER WHO YOU VOTE FOR …JUST GO VOTE!

  2. SAM on August 23rd, 2011 2:51 pm

    This move does not change my opinion of Packy one bit – I was voting for him in the beginning and I will be voting for him in the end. What does it matter if he is affiliated with one party or another???? I am registered as a republican but don’t always vote that way in the end – just because. We should stand behind Packy for what he stands for and I personally think what he did was a good strategy move. He tried to stay in one party last year and it ended up hurting him. Kevin White definitely needs to get out of that office and someone who is true to our community needs to get in there. Sam Archer seems like a nice guy as well as Jim Taylor but I would have to say that you are only hearing these names now because they have filed to run for office but everyone who has lived in this area knows Packy either personally or by connection from someone else or what he does for this area. I say “GOOD LUCK PACKY” and you definitely have my vote.

  3. Shannon on August 22nd, 2011 7:58 pm

    I am not here to get into a debate or say ill comments. I think people lose sight and start getting way of the topic.

    The only point I would like to make is Packy is a wonderful man who would give the shirt off his back for anyone in need in our community. He has volunteered a lot of his personal time for the kids in our area as well. Alot of people could learn to be more like Packy on a moral basis and just be a good genuine person.

    At the end of the day, he can look himself in the mirror and know he did what was best for the people/kids in our community. Can the rest of us?

    Packy, win lose or draw it does not matter. The ones of us that have known you our entire life know what kind of man you are and will be there with you until the end. Thank you !

    If we do not have anything nice to say then just don’t say anything at all.

  4. All was quiet... on August 22nd, 2011 1:26 pm

    @ Matt… All was quiet and kosher until you got on here being a ” political hack ” yourself. Mr. Mitchell played sneaky politician and turned on his own party, which will surely bite him in the end!!! Yea Packy has been in the community claiming to be a Republican through and through, but we all turn around and go ” Where’s Packy ?!?…..” Oh yea thats right…. He jumped ship at the beginning!!! That’s exactly what we don’t need!!!!! Turning on the majority of his supporters and friends wont get Packy nowhere but sitting there wondering…. What did I do?!?
    All was quiet… For “political hacks” needing to proofread their work before turning it in!!

  5. MATT on August 22nd, 2011 10:54 am

    AT LAST SOMEONE THAT CARES ABOUT PEOPLE!
    CARES ENOUGH TO RUN FOR THE OFFICE.
    SMART ENOUGH TO KNOW THAT IF 5 OR MORE RUN IN A CLOSED PRIMARY YOU ARE SURE TO REELECT WHAT YOU HAVE.
    PACKY MAY NOT HAVE SAMS MONEY
    HE MAY NOT HAVE A PHD
    HE HAS NOT BEEN IN OFFICE FOR 8 NON PRODUCTIVE YEARS

    BUT HE HAS BEEN IN THE COMMUINTY HELPING THOSE IN NEED
    SOME THING WE ALL COULD DO A LITTLE MORE OF.

    CONPARE WHAT PACKYS HAS GIVEN OF HIMSELF TO THE CITZENS OF DIST FIVE AS WELL AS ESCAMBIA COUNTY TO THE OTHERS THAT ARE IN THIS RACE YOU WILL BE SCHOCKED,

    ITS EASY TO LOOK GOOD FOR ONE YEAR CHECK THE PAST 10 YEARS AND YOU WILL NOT SEE SAM KEVIN HELPING ANYONE OTHER THAN THEMSELFS.

    GOOD LUCK PACKY DONT GET DISCOURGED BY THE POLITICAL HACKS.

  6. 429SCJ on August 22nd, 2011 10:23 am

    If I wanted to be county commissioner I would join a local church and court the patronage of local voters. Once I was elected, I would move to a larger church, so I could run with the big boys. I would then divorce my wife, and look for one I felt matched my developing lifestyle. I guess thats how its done?

  7. Interested on August 21st, 2011 11:48 am

    No william sorry to confuse, I was not talking about here in Escambia County for the National Election. I was talking about the fact that in the Nation
    Obama got 365 electorial votes, while Mc Cain got 175 and none of us saw
    that coming. My point was nobody thought he would win either.
    Here in the north end we don’t all hang out at Fran’s, or the Bait
    shop and we don’t all work at the paper mill, so anything could happen and no
    one knows for sure who we all will vote for.

  8. Dennis HE Wiggins on August 21st, 2011 11:21 am

    Re: Shaun M ~ I had the honor of meeting Sam, Packy , and Jim at the Cottage Hill Back to School Bash. (Kevin never showed up as far as I know.) All of them are true gentlemen, but I still ask, “What will they do for US?” The way government SHOULD be run will be revealed in November when I launch my website. Representative government is what we need – not Party Politics!

  9. William on August 21st, 2011 9:31 am

    Interested wrote: “There are
    a lot of people up here in the north end. It can change anytime, just like 70 percent of the American People voted for Obama, ”

    If you are saying that 70 percent of the people in North Escambia voted for Obama, that’s not right.

    Only 25 percent of the vote in North Escambia was for Obama. The *only* precinct he carried was Century, and that was with 62 percent of the vote. McCain received 75 percent of the North Escambia vote.

    Nationally, that’s not right either. Obama won with 53.7 percent of the nationwide vote.

  10. Interested on August 21st, 2011 8:38 am

    I guess many of you think you know what everyone else is going to do, and
    you forget just how many of us don’t hang out where you do. There are
    a lot of people up here in the north end. It can change anytime, just like 70 percent of the American People voted for Obama, bet you didn’t see that coming either. People were tired of GW now their tired of K.W.

  11. Shaun M on August 20th, 2011 10:29 pm

    Sam Archer is the man! I would change partys to if I had to run against him…Sam Archer 2012!!!!!!! He’s for the people !!! If you don’t believe me call him up and get to know the man.

  12. RA on August 20th, 2011 10:04 pm

    @ Me and Bubba
    Both of you are making some pretty foolish assumptions by saying Packy will face KW in the general election. Packy jumped ship because he doesn’t have a prayer against Sam Archer and his ONLY hope is for KW to defeat Archer. NOT A CHANCE!!! Packy is desperate and running with his tail tucked between his legs and everyone knows it. If Packy has what it takes to win then he should have stayed true as a Republican and won fair and square. Packy has hurt himself and has shown his true character. We need someone we can trust and will have the guts to stand when things get tough. Packy has proven he is not that man.

  13. juju on August 20th, 2011 9:38 pm

    packy doesn’t have the finances to compete with the crooked Kevin or the kind of and campaign Sam Archer is going to be…Go Sam…by the way Packy..you don’t stand a chance in the general either…

  14. Dennis HE Wiggins on August 20th, 2011 9:27 pm

    I don’t know what was in Mr. Mitchell’s mind when he changed, but from the beginning I have been “independent.” While my values are truly conservative, I have become disappointed in BOTH parties. They have both left us all trying to keep our heads above water while they are high and dry. I have chosen my path, and I will stay the course. “Me” has the right mindset – vote CANDIDATE NOT PARTY. Representative government is what we need – not Party Politics!

  15. BM on August 20th, 2011 6:01 pm

    @me its BM not BW if you gonna direct your little comment towards me at least get it right. I totally understand that you have the right to vote for whoever you want and i think its time for a change in dist 5 if you think that i vote strictly party your wrong an the good ol boy that we have in there right now an the ones in the past that tell everyone what they want to hear is in definate need of replacing.Know your morals an stick to them is what i say an dont forget the people who put you there.This was a strategy by packy an it just gets him in the primary for a race in which it splits up more votes an less chance for him to win an anybody else to defeat KW the incumbent.”" I would hate to get in a war of wits especially when you come without any armor”"”" im far from narrow minded an you have mistaken me from the beginning look forward to your next post have a nice day :)

  16. Crooked! on August 20th, 2011 5:57 pm

    He will be at the end only because he played sneaky crooked politics and swapped parties, to avoid getting spanked otherwise!!! Do we want a commissioner like this folks? No way!!!!

  17. bubba on August 20th, 2011 3:16 pm

    GOOD move Packey, YOU WILL BE THERE AT THE END!!!!!AND TAKE KEVIN ON ONE ON ONE!!!! KEVIN HAS FORGOTTEN WERE HE CAME FROM!!!!!

  18. bwayne on August 20th, 2011 2:42 pm

    I’ll vote for the man before I vote for the party affiliate.

  19. Me on August 20th, 2011 2:25 pm

    @ BW

    Do you think KW has not flipped and flopped? Oh yes go back and check most of the good ole boys used to be DEMS and flipped to get the votes of narrow minded people and flilp and flop on issues depending on what the crowd wants to here . I do not vote PARTY I vote PERSON and I have the RIGHT to vote for who ever I want to without fear or people. Futhermore I think it is a very smart move!! Go Packy, we are behind you!!!

  20. BM on August 20th, 2011 2:18 pm

    @fairlane 63
    Very well said..the politicians that are in there now voted to do away with the run off so they could do away with competition an keep their jobs no matter how little they actually do for the people an remember this when you go to the polls.. Packy your little scheme to make it to primary will never work to win it for you..

  21. Good Move?!? on August 20th, 2011 2:08 pm

    Packy Mitchell has screwed himself…..not just in this race but when he loses this race like he did the last one, he wont have a Republican to stand behind him in the next position he runs for. Nobody wants somebody in office that they cant trust and looky looky…. We have a candidate that is floppin like a fish already!!!! Next headline… PACKY turns Democrat!!!!

  22. BM on August 20th, 2011 2:07 pm

    @ me
    You think this is a good move Just because he changed his party an is taking a free ride to the primary an making other candidates split votes. Whats he gonna do when the supporters he had stay with a republican candidate an he receives less votes than he did last time… Be better off to bow out now..

  23. Me on August 20th, 2011 1:19 pm

    Good move Packy!! I am behind you all the way. Finally someone to get into the general election and run against the Kevin White!!

  24. rob on August 20th, 2011 11:21 am

    I was a Mr. Mitchell supporter 4 years ago and was debating this time but I wont be anymore, how can you jump and run to a different party, when you already prefiled as a Republican?

  25. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!? on August 20th, 2011 10:40 am

    As a Republican and friend of Packy Mitchell…..Packy has just turmed himself into a complete joke and a complete embarrassment to the Republican Party!!!! I hope my fellow voters remember this…. When we all here in Escambia County need someone to stand by us… Here we have a candidate that is saying, sorry cant do that.

  26. Fairlane63 on August 20th, 2011 10:37 am

    The legislature getting rid of run-off primaries several years ago was one of the most under-the-radar sneaky things they’ve ever done. Whenever there are multiple candidates running in the primary in the same party, the incumbent is almost guaranteed to win due to the anti-incumbent vote being split over several candidates. Unfortunately, that’s what’s shaping up for D5 2012.

    The legislature really needs to bring back the run-off primaries, but I’m not holding my breath…

    I don’t know if that had any impact on Mr. Mitchell’s decision or not, but I would bet that it did.

  27. mark on August 20th, 2011 10:33 am

    I WAS A PACKY MITCHELL SUPPORTER but never again, what a slap in the face to all of his republican supporters? HOW??

  28. BM on August 20th, 2011 10:21 am

    @ bratt resident this is the espn worst play of the day “come on man”…

  29. BM on August 20th, 2011 10:19 am

    Turn an run for the hills packy the pressure is already got to you. You think all the people are gonna vote for someone who turned on his own party just to make it to the general election. Sounds to me like this is just an ego trip an your not in it for the right reasons. We need someone to stand up for the people when the times are hard not turn on us…..

    @

  30. tallyho on August 20th, 2011 10:12 am

    When will you liberals learn to count. Bush has been out of office for three years, yet Obama and the liberals still try to lay everthing on some one else and not on thierselves. We are in trouble because we are fighting two wars, Hey bush was fighting two wars, gas prices are high because Bush is in the back pockets of the oil company, Hey gas prices are up around 70 percent in the last three years. Is Bush still in office. By the way how is this hopey changey thien working out?

  31. bratt resident on August 20th, 2011 9:57 am

    Why would we vote for a man who’s confused on where he stands on his political party…Packy you got beat last time by almost 2,000 votes friend COME ON MAN this should be on Espn..

  32. friction on August 20th, 2011 7:21 am

    Vote independent. Two party system has ruined this country.

  33. 429SCJ on August 20th, 2011 6:47 am

    After the Cheney/Bush administration disaster. I think I would dump the republicans as well. The democrats are no better.