A recent Gallup Report rates Mississippi the most conservative state in the country. Last year, Republicans took majorities in the both the Mississippi House of Representatives and the Mississippi Senate – an achievement unheard of in modern times. Seven of eight statewide elected officials are Republicans (nine of ten if you count U.S. Senators) and five of six district wide elected officials belong to the GOP (eight of nine if you count U.S. Representatives). More than fifty local elected officials have switched from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party since the inauguration of President Barack Obama; and as a firmly red state, Mississippi hasn’t voted for a Democrat for President since Jimmy Carter edged the state by fewer than 15,000 votes over Gerald Ford in 1976.
Despite the current Republican leanings in Mississippi, Congressman Bennie Thompson, a Democrat from Bolton, continues his hold on the Second Congressional District for nigh on twenty years. According to National Journal his voting record is among the top twenty-five percent of liberals in the House of Representative. NARAL (National Abortion Rights Action League) Pro-Choice America awarded Thompson a 100% pro-choice grade. With over $1.2 million cash-on-hand, his campaign fund dwarfs the combined financial resources of all his challengers: Republican Bill Marcy, independent Cobby Williams, and Reform Party candidate Lajena Williams.
Madison County Journal
9/12/12
