DeSoto Times-Tribune
Doug Davis named as Hyde-Smith Chief of Staff
By Bob Bakken
A former state senator representing DeSoto County has been named the new chief of staff for U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Mississippi).
The state’s junior senator from the Magnolia State named Doug Davis to the position with the departure of Brad White, who will lead the transition effort for Governor-elect Tate Reeves.
Not only is Davis a former state senator, but he has been a long-time associate of Hyde-Smith.
Davis has been the deputy chief of staff for Hyde-Smith and was based in Jackson.
“Doug Davis has the legislative, political, and personal abilities needed to administer my Senate offices,” Hyde-Smith said in a news release. “I believe he will serve me and all Mississippians well as my chief of staff. I am also grateful to Brad White for his leadership and skills, which have been invaluable to me.”
Hyde-Smith, the twice-elected Mississippi Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce and a former state senator, was appointed in April 2018 to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by U.S. Senator Thad Cochran (R-Miss.). She subsequently won a special election in November 2018 to become the first woman elected to represent Mississippi in Washington, D.C.
Davis, a DeSoto County native, was chief of staff to Mississippi Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann from 2013 to 2018 before joining Hyde-Smith’s Senate staff as a senior advisor.
The new Chief of Staff is the son of former DeSoto County Chancery Clerk W.E. “Sluggo” Davis. The Magnolia Heights School graduate earned a degree from Mississippi College.
Davis represented District 1 in the state Senate from 2004 to 2011, where he chaired the Appropriations Committee and the Universities and Colleges Committee.
Davis was first elected in a 2004 special election, when current state Supreme Court Justice Bobby Chamberlin retired from the legislature.
Davis’ background also includes time as the chairman of the state Parole Board under Gov. Phil Bryant.
In addition, Davis worked on business development, marketing, and compliance at First Security Bank from 2001 to 2013.