With elections coming up in November for two Lafayette County Board of Supervisor seats, it’s important for candidates to start becoming educated and involved in what’s going on in their district.

During past elections, many residents would toss their hats into the ring to be elected supervisor for their district. However, not many were ever seen at one of the meetings.

This year doesn’t seem to be too different.

Since candidates qualified for the election earlier this year, not all have been spotted at meetings.

Now that the candidates have been reduced to three in each race, it would be nice for voters to see those candidates at the meetings.

A Board of Supervisors candidate should know the issues that are coming before the entity before taking a seat with fellow leaders.

This would help keep things moving in Lafayette County and that’s very important considering how quickly things are changing.

Studies have been released recently that indicate Lafayette County will grow by 100 people per month. The city of Oxford is running out of room for expansion. New construction has come at the cost of many low-income people losing their homes as the new pushes out the old. Those people are moving into the county.

People who want to build a big home on lots of land naturally are drawn to the county. More and more subdivisions with moderately priced “normal” homes are popping up.

With the university’s enrollment growing, so are the number of jobs at the university.

The supervisors have been busy planning new roads to accommodate some of that growth. They have to work closely with the city because much of the new construction requires city water and/or sewer. They have been working with the university on road and other projects. They’re trying to keep up maintenance on the existing roads as they become more heavily traveled.

The county Solid Waste Department has been battling a growing litter problem. The supervisors have been, and will continue to be, very busy.

The winners in November will have a huge learning curve if they don’t familiarize themselves with the issues facing the county.

While we encourage all residents to get more involved in local government, whether inside or outside of the city limits, by attending Oxford Board of Aldermen and/or Lafayette County Board of Supervisor meetings, candidates, more than anyone, should make it a goal to start attending these meetings.

If they don’t happen to win the election come November, they can at least say they are well-informed and involved citizens.