Brandon Presley

Career

Presley served as the Mayor of Nettleton, Mississippi from 2001 to 2007. After Bo Robinson announced his retirement Presley was elected Public Service Commissioner for the Northern District of the Mississippi Public Service Commission in 2007 and re-elected in 2011 and 2015.

Presley has advocated bringing internet access to rural areas of Mississippi and has opposed the Kemper Project. Presley, as well as the other two members of the Public Service Commission, opposes using Mississippi as an alternative site to Yucca Mountain for nuclear waste storage.

In 2014, Presley succeeded Betsy Wergin of Minnesota to serve as chair of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners’ Committee on Consumer Affairs. The committee is charged with analyzing the role that state service commissions play in consumer protection within the energy and telecommunications industries.

In the 2015 elections, Democratic State Representative Cecil Brown was elected to represent the Central District. This gave the Democratic Party a majority on the Commission. Subsequently Presley was appointed to serve as chair of the commission. In March, he presided over the groundbreaking of the largest solar power facility in the state. The project is a joint effort between the PSC, the United States Navy and Mississippi Power at NCBC Gulfport.

Political Future

As a popular Democratic officeholder in a strongly Republican state, he has been mentioned as a potential candidate for higher office including Governor of Mississippi and as a Democratic candidate for the special election to fill the seat of the late Alan Nunnelee. He has not yet run for higher office, instead focusing on his responsibilities as a member of the Public Service Commission.

Personal life

Presley is related to Elvis Presley. He lost 216 pounds during 2013 and 2014.