VICKSBURG, Miss. — Brandon Presley mentioned Brett Favre’s name. An overwhelmingly Black group of voters gathered inside Medgar, and Angela Scott Foundation’s headquarters on Thursday and responded with near-universal nods and one “that’s right.”

This was the Democratic gubernatorial candidate’s first campaign stop after Wednesday night’s debate with Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves, who finds himself in an unusually close race in the deep red state that hasn’t had a Democratic hold the state’s highest office in two decades.

“One of the things that got me into this race was that I had been working on getting running water for a family in Leflore County,” Presley told Front Office Sports. “They were catching rainwater in a boat so they could flush their toilets. It took us over a year to get that money so they could get some basic water service, but these jokers like Brett Favre can snap their fingers and get $5 million for a volleyball court. It just made me sick to my stomach. I hate the good ol’ boy network.”