Carl Clement White was born on September 14,1889 in Dixon,Mississippi.[4] He was the son of Lonnie Rufus White (of Scotch-Irish descent).[4] He was of English descent maternally.[4]
State representative (1924–1928)
White announced his campaign for Mississippi state representative in March 1923.[5] He won the Democratic primary and was unopposed in the general election.[6] During his time in the legislature,he was the chairman of the Universities and Colleges Committee.[7]
In August 1926,he announced his intention to run for state auditor of Mississippi.[8] White defeated primary opponent Macey Dinkins by over 40,000 votes,[9] receiving the most votes of any statewide candidate that year.[10] After the primary,auditor-elect White became a pay warrant clerk in the state auditor's office to prepare for the duties of the office.[11] He was unopposed in the general election,and was sworn in as state auditor on January 16,1928.[12]
State auditor (1928–1932)
White oversaw the collection of a new statewide five-cent per gallon gasoline tax passed by the state legislature in 1929.[13] He threatened to sue the city of Jackson and other cities for refusing to pay the tax.[14]
In September 1929,it was reported that Governor Theodore G. Bilbo requested financial investigations of White,as well as Mississippi secretary of state Walker Wood and state superintendent W. F. Bond.[15] Bilbo's political allies justified the requests as "a thorough house cleaning",while critics alleged that he wanted to amass control of the state departments.[16] In a statement,White welcomed the potential probe,stating that his office was "open at any and all times for probe or inquiry".[17] He was summoned before a joint legislative investigative committee in October 1929,without any specific complaints being filed.[18]
1935 state auditor campaign
White announced his intention to run for a second term as state auditor on April 21,1934.[19] He led the first round of the Democratic primary election,receiving 44.5 percent of the vote compared to Carl Craig (34.1 percent) and Grover C. Ballard (21.4 percent).[20] A runoff election between White and Craig was held because no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote,[21] with Ballard endorsing White after being eliminated.[22] In the runoff,Craig won with 55.5 percent of the vote,receiving almost 40,000 more votes than White.[23]
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