Leflore County Circuit Clerk Elmus Stockstill has died.
The first African American to hold the office passed away early Wednesday morning at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson.
Mr. Stockstill, 50, had served as circuit clerk since 2012 and was completing his third term in office.
His wife, Machelle, said her husband had experienced problems with breathing because of fluid around the lungs and died of heart failure, although he recently had been diagnosed with stomach cancer.
“He loved everybody. He wanted everybody to be happy,” she said. “He had a kind heart.”
Stockstill was a graduate of Leflore County High School and Mississippi Valley State University, earning both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from MVSU, where he also taught as an adjunct professor earlier in his career.
Prior to his election as circuit clerk, Mr. Stockstill worked for 14 years as a field representative for U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson.
He began running for circuit clerk at the age of 30, unsuccessfully challenging incumbent Trey Evans in 2003 and 2007. Four years later, when Evans decided not to seek reelection, Stockstill bested a crowded field, defeating three opponents for the Democratic nomination and three more in the general election.
He was unopposed this year in winning a fourth term as the county’s chief elections official and clerk to the circuit court.
He was also a former Itta Bena alderman.
The Stockstills are the parents of a son, Elmus Jr., and a daughter, Karrington. They have one grandson, Kashton.
Arrangements for funeral services have not yet been made.
- Contact Susan Montgomery at 662-581-7241 or smontgomery@gwcommonwealth.com. Editor Tim Kalich contributed to this report.
