Barbara Lene Blanton (nee Yarbrough, born September 8, 1937) is an American politician from Mississippi. She represented Rankin County in the

Mississippi State Senate The Mississippi State Senate is the upper house of the Mississippi Legislature, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The Senate, along with the Lower house, lower Mississippi House of Represen ...

from 1988 to 1992 and was an unsuccessful candidate for

Secretary of State of Mississippi The Mississippi secretary of state is an officer of Mississippi originally established under the Article IV, §14 of Mississippi Constitution of 1817, and was reestablished under Article V, §133 of the Mississippi Constitution of 1890. Several ...

in 1995.

Early life and career

Barbara Lean Yarbrough was born on September 8, 1937, in

Crystal Springs, Mississippi Crystal Springs is a city in Copiah County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 5,044 as of the 2010 census, down from 5,873 in 2000. It is part of the Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area. Geography U.S. Route 51 runs through th ...

, to Clarence Yarbrough and grew up on a farm near

Terry, Mississippi Terry is a town in Hinds County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 1,063 at the 2010 census, up from 664 at the 2000 census. It is located along Interstate 55, about southwest of Jackson and located in Supervisors District Five of ...

. She graduated from Terry High School and then attended Hinds Junior College, where she met and married her husband, Terrell D. "Ted" Blanton circa 1957. Ted served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

from 1961 to 1974, and the couple moved around several times while raising their three children. She later attended

Millsaps College Millsaps College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Jackson, Mississippi. It was founded in 1890 and is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. History The college was founded ...

, graduating in 1976. During her time there, she earned the Biology Research Award for her research on

Hodgkin's lymphoma Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a type of lymphoma in which cancer originates from a specific type of white blood cell called lymphocytes, where multinucleated Reed–Sternberg cells (RS cells) are present in the lymph nodes. The condition was named a ...

. Blanton has run a tractor dealership and a floral shop.

Political career

In April 1987, Blanton announced her candidacy to represent the 30th District (composed of northern Rankin County) as a Republican in the

for the 1988-1992 term. In the general election on November 3, 1987, she defeated the Democratic three-term incumbent

Mitch Childre Mitch is a short form of the masculine given name Mitchell. It is also sometimes a nickname, usually for a person with the surname Mitchell. It may refer to: People * Mitch Albom (born 1958), American author, journalist, and musician * Mitch A ...

in an upset victory by receiving 8,267 votes or 52% of the total, compared to Childre's 7,693 votes, or 48% of the total. Blanton ran for re-election in 1991, but lost to Dean Kirby in the Republican primary: Blanton received 3,915 votes, while Kirby received 5,073 votes. The Senate districts were redrawn in 1992, prompting a new election for the remainder of the term. Blanton spent almost $21,655 on her campaign for re-election, with all but $500 being from her own money. Kirby spent $4,819 on his campaign with $3,950 coming from contributions and less than $1000 from his own money. In spite of being outspent on a 5-1 margin, Blanton still lost the primary, receiving 2,565 votes compared to 3,864 for Kirby. After the election, the Blantons later moved to northeast

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city sits on the Pearl River (Mississippi–Louisiana), Pearl River and is locate ...

. Blanton campaigned in the election for

Mississippi Secretary of State The Mississippi secretary of state is an officer of Mississippi originally established under the Article IV, §14 of Mississippi Constitution of 1817, and was reestablished under Article V, §133 of the Mississippi Constitution, Mississippi Consti ...

in 1995 and defeated Chris Webster, a former legal aide to Governor

Kirk Fordice Daniel Kirkwood "Kirk" Fordice Jr. (; February 10, 1934 – September 7, 2004) was an American politician and businessman who served as the 61st governor of Mississippi from 1992 to 2000. A member of the Republican Party, he was the state's fir ...

, in the Republican primary, with 62,050 votes compared to Webster's 49,828 votes. However, she lost the general election to Democrat Eric Clark. Clark received 416,397 votes or 61% of the total, while Blanton received 266,834 votes or 39% of the total. She appeared in three discussions that appeared on

C-Span Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American Cable television in the United States, cable and Satellite television in the United States, satellite television network, created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a Non ...

Personal life

Blanton was a member of the

Baptist Church Baptists are a denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers ( believer's baptism) and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches generally subscribe to the doctrines of ...

. She and her husband Terrell Davis Blanton (1938-2017) had one son and two daughters, born 1958/1959, 1961, and 1963/1964. Her daughter, Donna Michelle Blanton Dickey (born December 30, 1961), died on August 23, 2006.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blanton, Barbara 1937 births People from Brandon, Mississippi Republican Party Mississippi state senators Millsaps College alumni 20th-century members of the Mississippi Legislature Living people