Percy Watson

Percy Willis Watson (born June 5, 1951) is an American politician. He is a member of the Mississippi House of Representatives from the 103rd District, being first elected in 1980. He is a member of the Democratic party.

Biography Percy Willis Watson was born on June 5, 1951, in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. He graduated from the segregated L. J. Rowan High School as the valedictorian of his class in 1969. Watson earned a full scholarship to and then attended the University of Iowa, graduating after three years with a B. A. in political science with special honors in May 1972. He then attended the University of Iowa College of Law, receiving his J. D. (in an accelerated program) just two years later in 1974. Watson then moved to Alaska, passed the state bar exam, and became an attorney, working as an associate with the law firm of M. Ashley Dickerson, Inc. in Anchorage, Alaska. During his campaign, Watson received racist hate mail from whites, and did not campaign actively in the white community to avoid having white people be encouraged to vote against him in the election. Watson defeated a white attorney, Michael B. "Mike" McMahan, in the Democratic primary, by a vote of 2418 to 1361. As there was no Republican candidate, the primary was tantamount to the election.

1983-1987 Watson ran unopposed for re-election for the 103rd District. In the 1984 Session, Watson, along with 25 other representatives (led by Representative Eric Clark) sought to change the rules to decrease the power of the House's Speaker, C. B. Newman. In 1984, Watson was elected as a delegate for the 1984 Democratic National Convention. In 1986, Watson joined a 20-member steering committee (that had the support of 65 representatives) that drafted a bill with a new set of rules, which would be presented in the 1987 session. With the new bill, leaders of certain committees would be now elected by members of the House instead of being chosen by the Speaker.

1987-1991 Watson defeated challenger Charles L. Davis in the Democratic primary for re-election, and was the only candidate in the general election for the 103rd District. At the beginning of the 1988–1992 term, Watson was selected to chair the Judiciary "A" Committee, replacing fellow rule-change supporter Terrell Stubbs who had not run for re-election. Watson became the first black person to chair the Judiciary "A" Committee, as well as the House's highest-ranking black delegate. As the chair of the Judiciary "A" Committee, in the 1988 session, Watson was the lead negotiator in a tort reform conference committee to make a bill that would decrease the statute of limitations on lawsuits. However, the bill died because the negotiators could not reach agreement.