Jim Herring

James Harrell Herring, Sr. (born November 13, 1938), is an American lawyer. From 1997 to 1999, he was a judge of the Mississippi Court of Appeals and from 2001 to 2008 the state chairman of the Mississippi Republican Party.[1][2]

James Harrell "Jim" Herring, Sr.
State Chairman of the Mississippi Republican Party
In office 2001 – September 4, 2008
Preceded by	Michael Retzer
Succeeded by	Brad White
Personal details
Born	(1938-11-13) November 13, 1938 Canton, Madison County Mississippi, USA
Political party	Democrat-turned-Republican
Spouse(s)	Beverly Herring
Children	James Herring, Jr. Daughters Caroline and Christine
Residence	Canton, Mississippi
Alma mater	University of Mississippi University of Mississippi School of Law
Occupation	Lawyer
Military service
Branch/service	United States Army
Rank	Colonel; member of the Judge Advocate General's Corps

Background

In 1960, Herring received a Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of Mississippi at Oxford, where he joined Phi Delta Theta fraternity. In 1963, he obtained his Juris Doctor from the University of Mississippi School of Law. He served in the United States Army for three years of active duty as a member of the Judge Advocate General's Corps. For another twenty-one years, he was an Army reservist, in which capacity he reached the rank of colonel. He received the Army Commendation Medal and three Meritorious Service medals.[3]

Herring and his wife, Beverly, have a son, James, Jr., and two daughters, Caroline, a folk singer, and Christine. He is an elder in the Grave Chapel Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Canton.[3]

Political career

A former prosecuting attorney for Madison County, Herring was elected as a Democrat in 1971 as the district attorney for the 20th Circuit District of Mississippi. On August 7, 1979, Herring ran for governor of Mississippi and polled 135,812 votes (18.4 percent) in the Democratic primary election. In a runoff election, the nomination went to William F. Winter, who defeated Evelyn Gandy, the lieutenant governor, who carried the backing of former U.S. Senator James O. Eastland. Winter then handily defeated Republican Gil Carmichael of Meridian in the general election in what became Carmichael's second consecutive defeat for the state's highest office.[4] At some point after the 1979 election, Herring defected to the Republican Party.

In 1996, Governor Kirk Fordice, the first Republican chief executive in his state since Reconstruction, appointed Herring to the Mississippi State Personnel Board. In 1997, Fordice named him to the state Court of Appeals, in which a capacity, he participated in more than one thousand legal cases. Governor Haley Barbour named him a special judge of the Mississippi Supreme Court.[3]

Herring has been a member of both the Executive and Rules Committees of the Republican National Committee. Through an appointment from the national party chairman, he has been the "Chairman of the Chairmen" of all state and territorial Republican Parties. U.S. President George W. Bush appointed Herring to the trustees of the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation for a six-year term. He was also vice chairman of the foundation board. He is a board member of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy. In 2012, he headed the transition team for incoming Republican Governor Phil Bryant.[3]

Herring considers himself an advocate of the Eleventh Commandment, promoted by former U.S. President Ronald W. Reagan.[5]

References

1. Ashley Elkins (January 10, 2008). "Herring to step down as Miss. GOP chairman". djjournal.com. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
2. "New Chairman at Mississippi Republican Party: Brad White Brings New Energy and Grassroots Experience to MSGOP". Gulf Coast News. September 8, 2008. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
3. "James H. Herring". hlclawfirm.com. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
4. "Herring, Jim". ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
5. "The Specter of Hillary". jim-herring.blogspot.com. August 15, 2013. Retrieved June 12, 2014.

Political offices
Preceded by Michael Retzer	State Chairman of the Mississippi Republican Party James Harrell Herring, Sr. 2001–2008	Succeeded by Brad White