De'Keither Stamps (born November 21, 1976) is an American politician serving as a member of the

Mississippi Public Service Commission The Mississippi Public Service Commission (MPSC or PSC) is a government agency which regulates telecommunications, electric, gas, water and sewer utilities in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The commission was created in 1884 and in its early ...

. He previously served in the

Mississippi House of Representatives The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the U.S. state of Mississippi. According to the state constitution of 1890, it is to comprise no more than 122 members elected for ...

from the 66th district as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

from 2020 to 2024. He ran for the 2023 election to the Mississippi Public Service Commission for the Central District, defeating Republican incumbent

Brent Bailey Brent Bailey is an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter born in Tucson, Arizona. Bailey has appeared in television series such as ''Criminal Minds'', ''Rizzoli & Isles'', and ''Hart of Dixie''. He also played Alex Knightley in the ...

in a rematch of their 2019 race. He assumed office in 2024.

Early life and education

Stamps was born on November 21, 1976, in

Learned, Mississippi Learned is a town in Hinds County, Mississippi, United States. Population The population was 94 at the 2010 census, up from 50 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area. Name The community has the name of one ...

, and was raised in nearby

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 ...

. He attended

Forest Hill High School Forest Hill High School is a public high school located in Jackson, Mississippi, United States. It serves students from grades 9 12, and is part of the Jackson Public School District. The current principal is Torrey Hampton. Demographics A tota ...

before transferring and graduating from

Crystal Springs High School The Copiah County School District is a public school district based in Copiah County, Mississippi (USA). The district serves the communities of Crystal Springs, Wesson (the Copiah County portion), Georgetown, and Beauregard. Schools * Cr ...

in 1995. He also attended

Marine Corps University Marine Corps University is a military education university system of the United States Marine Corps. It is part of the Naval University System and accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools t ...

Career

Stamps joined the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

and was assigned to President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

's security team, serving four years in that role. Stamps was later a military security officer assigned to American embassies in

Dar es Salaam Dar es Salaam (, ; from ) is the largest city and financial hub of Tanzania. It is also the capital of the Dar es Salaam Region. With a population of over 7 million people, Dar es Salaam is the largest city in East Africa by population and the ...

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

, and

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. After leaving the Marine Corps in 2002, he joined the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

to fight in the

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

after the Marines wanted to put him on embassy security. After retiring again, he returned to

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

. A

, Stamps served on the Jackson City Council for Ward 4 from 2013 to 2020. As a council member, he objected to the Jackson's mayor

open carry In the United States, open carry refers to the practice of visibly carrying a firearm in public places, as distinguished from Concealed carry in the United States, concealed carry, where firearms cannot be seen by the casual observer. To "carry ...

gun ban. With the resignation of Representative Jarvis Dortch, Stamps filed to fill the vacancy for the

. He greatly outraised his contender Bob Lee and won the October 16, 2020 special election. He was appointed to the Constitution, Investigate State Offices, Military Affairs, Municipalities, and Public Utilities committees. He co-sponsored a bill protecting Mississippi students’ right to free speech. He voiced opposition to an election bill that would revise voter rolls. He ran for election for the Mississippi Public Service Commission for the central district in 2019, narrowly losing to

50.3% to 49.7%. He ran again in 2023 in what was considered a competitive race. In an interview for the race, he emphasized affordability, reliability, and

return on investment Return on investment (ROI) or return on costs (ROC) is the ratio between net income (over a period) and investment (costs resulting from an investment of some resources at a point in time). A high ROI means the investment's gains compare favorab ...

of utilities in ratemaking. He supported a

consumer advocate Consumer protection is the practice of safeguarding buyers of goods and services, and the public, against unfair practices in the marketplace. Consumer protection measures are often established by law. Such laws are intended to prevent businesse ...

position at the commission. He narrowly flipped the seat 51.1% to 48.9%, making him the only

on the commission.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stamps, DeKeither Living people Politicians from Jackson, Mississippi Democratic Party members of the Mississippi House of Representatives 21st-century members of the Mississippi Legislature United States Marine Corps officers United States Army officers African-American state legislators in Mississippi Mississippi city council members 21st-century African-American politicians 1976 births African-American city council members in Mississippi