Charles Tillman (born 1932/1933) is an American politician who served on the

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson, officially the City of Jackson, is the Capital city, capital of and the List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city is also one of two county seats of Hinds County, Mississippi, ...

City council for twelve years and as acting mayor after the death of Chokwe Lumumba, becoming the 5th consecutive

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

mayor of the city.

Biography

Tillman graduated with a B.A. in business education from

Alcorn State University Alcorn State University (Alcorn State, ASU or Alcorn) is a public historically black land-grant university adjacent to Lorman, Mississippi. It was founded in 1871 and was the first black land grant college established in the United States. O ...

in 1958 and a M.A. in guidance and counseling from the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

in 1962. He did additional coursework at

Atlanta University Clark Atlanta University (CAU or Clark Atlanta) is a private, Methodist, historically black research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Clark Atlanta is the first Historically Black College or University (HBCU) in the Southern United States. Founde ...

and took post-graduate classes at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...

and at

Jackson State University Jackson State University (Jackson State or JSU) is a public historically black research university in Jackson, Mississippi. It is one of the largest HBCUs in the United States and the fourth largest university in Mississippi in terms of studen ...

. He began his career as a counselor at Rowan and Brinkley middle schools in Jackson before becoming a school principal and later president of the Jackson Public Schools Board. He was an active volunteer which led to his running for the Jackson City Council in 2005. In May 2005, he narrowly defeated Betty Dagner-Cook, 903 votes to Dagner-Cook's 845 votes in the Democratic primary for Ward 5 councilmember. On June 7, 2005, he defeated Independent candidate Joe Louis Sanders in the general election, 2,586 votes to Sanders' 384 votes. After the death of mayor

Chokwe Lumumba Chokwe Lumumba (; August 2, 1947 – February 25, 2014) was an American attorney, activist, and politician, who was affiliated with the black nationalist organization Republic of New Afrika and served as its second vice president. He served as a ...

, Tillman was sworn in as acting mayor on February 25, 2014. He served as mayor until April 24, 2014, when

Tony Yarber Tony Tarzell Yarber (born April 16, 1978) is an American pastor, educator and politician in Jackson, Mississippi. He was elected as Mayor of Jackson in April 2014 from special election following the death in office of Chokwe Lumumba. A native of J ...

was sworn in after a special election. In the 2021 election, seeking a 4th term on the City Council, he was defeated by Vernon Hartley, 936 votes to Tillman's 482.

Awards

In 1982, Tillman received the Governor's Distinguished Service Award for Outstanding Voluntary Community Service and the National Council of Negro Women's Appreciation Award for Outstanding and Dedicated Service.

Personal life

He has two children.

References

External links

Office of the Mayor
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tillman, Charles 1930s births Living people Year of birth uncertain African-American mayors in Mississippi Mississippi Democrats University of Southern California alumni Alcorn State University alumni Mississippi city council members Mayors of Jackson, Mississippi 21st-century American politicians 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American educators 20th-century American educators