When Harvey Johnson Takes Special Interest Money It’s OK Apparently

When Harvey Johnson faced off against Marshand Crisler in the primary runoff which would likely decide the next mayor of Jackson he made an issue of the fact that Crisler raised significantly more money than the former mayor. (Maybe the donors remember the eight years of the Johnson administration and wanted to make sure the city would not repeat the same disastrous results, but that’s another story for another day).

However, now that Johnson is well positioned to regain his position as mayor, the money is flowing in. And who is donating to Johnson? Those same special interest that once liked Crisler, and Johnson once criticized.

From the Clarion-Ledger:

Johnson’s donor list now is chock full of lawyers, engineers and developers – the same types of people who contributed to Crisler and people likely to have an interest in how Johnson runs the city if he is elected. While they are the same types of donors, Zinn said they are not the same as Crisler supporters, who he said included “Republicans in northeast Jackson.”

Some of Johnson’s large contributors include Chicago lawyer Richard Boykin ($5,000); Baton Rouge lawyer Bernard Charbonnet Jr. ($4,000); Andrew Jenkins of the Flora engineering firm AJA Management ($5,000); and Jackson residential developer Michael Johnson ($5,000).

Johnson’s largest contributor during the period was Chicago entrepreneur Willie Wilson, who gave $15,000 during the reporting period and $24,000 total for the year.

But they are not bad guys anymore, according to Johnson’s campaign staff. Isn’t that refreshing to know.