TUPELO Mayor Jason Shelton will provide a keynote address this Saturday at a political event in Biloxi hosted by the state Libertarian Party.

Shelton is a Democrat and will join a roster of speakers that otherwise tilts Republican and Libertarian.

At least some deological diversity is precisely the point of the gathering, which is dubbed Loungin with Libertarians.

Promotional material for the event describes it as a venue for Libertarians and adherents of other political viewpoints to interact and network.

This is the fifth such Loungin event. It will be held at the White House Hotel in Biloxi.

Shelton himself is an advocate of a more collaborative and less ideologically blinkered political discourse. He has criticized the major U.S. political parties as a preoccupation with partisan advantage to the neglect of a functioning government.

With that in view, Shelton is happy to consider his appearance at a Libertarian event as en effort to help leverage his elected officer to broker a different kind of political environment.

I do feel a personal responsibility to do what I can to make it better, Shelton said in a recent interview with the Daily Journal. As mayor of Tupelo, you have a pretty high profile job.

Shelton himself is comfortable in a bi-partisan environment. He has twice now been comfortably elected as a Democrat in a traditionally Republican city and maintains a strong working relationship with a City Council under the control of a Republican supermajority.

Though he hasnt ruled out a run for higher office, Shelton has avoided strongly ideological fights during his tenure in office and has focused instead on what he calls good government.

Other speakers at the Saturday Libertarian event include a Republican member of the Biloxi City Council and the independent mayor of McLain. A member of the state Libertarian Partys executive committee will also deliver remarks. Other guests expected to attend include the newly-elected Republican mayor of Ocean Springs who identifies as largely Libertarian in outlook.

Libertarians generally align themselves with the Republican Party because of their strong support of a minimal federal government, low regulation and light taxation.

The party typically differs from traditional Republican stances, however, on foreign policy and national security issues as well as civil liberties and drug policy.

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