Why one Arkansas town has pinned its hopes on a teen mayor
Many teenagers consider their wardrobes a statement of their identity. For 18-year-old Jaylen Smith, that means a suit instead of jeans and a backpack. Today, the new mayor of Earle, Arkansas, has dressed with special care: a navy two-piece suit, crisp white shirt, and brown dress boots. His tie is red.
Tonight, he will call the City Council to order for the first time as mayor. He’s also heading into Memphis – 30 miles away – to buy his own car, a Nissan Altima.
“If you want to get somewhere, you have to act and dress like it,” he says. “And that’s what I did.”
If he’s nervous about his big speech, it doesn’t showas he does his job from an office with decor from the mid-20th century, from the burgundy-and-green striped wallpaper to the fake fruit vines wrapped around the brass sconces. The computer on his desk may be the only thing that, like Mr. Smith,
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