Wicker for Senate

PASCAGOULA The Jackson County Republican Women honored Gayle Wicker, who then spoke to the members about the importance of voting.

"Make sure people get registered to vote," Wicker said Wednesday. "It is so easy now. ... It's the grass roots. It's the ground game. It's getting people to the polls to vote Nov. 4."

Wicker is married to U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, who was appointed to the post on New Year's Eve by Gov. Haley Barbour after former U.S. Sen. Trent Lott of Pascagoula resigned.

The Republican senator will face former Democratic Gov. Ronnie Musgrove in the November election. The winner will serve the remainder of Lott's term, which ends in 2012. Wicker has been campaigning off and on with her husband since his appointment.

She described her husband, to whom she has been married for 32 years, as a man of principles.

"Of those 32 years he has been a public servant," Wicker said of the senator. "He's seen that as a calling and as a mission. I've watched him very closely and he has always served with dignity, honor and integrity. He has core beliefs that are based on his belief in God. He's guided by the Bible and what it teaches him. He doesn't need a poll or a finger in the wind to make a decision."

Wicker said her husband is also a man of courage.

"He has made some decisions that have caused us to get phone calls," Wicker said, "but, if he truly believes in something he is going to fight for it and stand up for it. He truly believes in the people of Mississippi. He loves Mississippi."