Tyree Irving has led Mississippi Democrats since July 2020, yet very little, if anything, has changed for the better at the ballot box for the party since then.
On Tuesday, 3rd Congressional District Democrat nominee Shuwaski Young lost overwhelmingly to incumbent Republican Congressman Michael Guest in the Midterm Election.
Young was only able to win 29% of the vote in the race. That percentage is six points lower than the Democrat candidate facing Guest in the 2020 election cycle when Dorothy Benford, a less funded and more obscure Democrat nominee, pulled in 35% of the vote.
As the dust settled on Wednesday, Young took to social media where he said the bottom line on his loss what that the “Republican Party of Mississippi showed up and we did not,” speaking to Democrats.
“I take full responsibility for our dismal loss last night,” Young began his statement before thanking those voters who did support him in the race and congratulating Congressman Guest on his re-election win.
Young went on to say that he was deeply disappointed in the Democratic turnout.
“The Democratic Party of Mississippi has failed to show up for the values and policies that we proclaim are important to Democracy,” Young said, adding that the Party must “invest and ensure” Democrat voters turnout on Election Day.
Young then made the following statement:
“Lastly, I will not seek and accept my party’s nomination for Governor in 2023 or any other office until a change in state party leadership has taken place. As a party, we must acknowledge the wants and beliefs of our base in Mississippi. We must rebuild our infrastructure, and that starts with a change at the top.”
Rumblings about dissatisfaction with Mississippi Democratic Party chairman Tyree Irving have been stirring for months. Irving has led the Party since July 2020 after former chairman Bobby Moak stepped down.
The Mississippi Democratic Party has continued to have trouble fundraising and recruiting viable candidates for local and state offices under Irving’s leadership while the Mississippi Republican Party has grown and attracted even more party switchers with additional ones on the horizon, according to recent comment from MSGOP chairman Frank Bordeaux.
Republicans in Mississippi are actively courting new voters through outreach efforts into minority communities across the state, seeking to find common ground and have honest conversations about how to move the state forward together.
Yet, the Mississippi Democratic Party remains largely silent, leaving what is left of their party faithful to wonder what the 2023 statewide elections hold and if they will be able to compete in county, legislative and state races.
To date, no credible Mississippi Democrat candidates with any real name ID or ability to fundraise to make a campaign viable has emerged for the top state offices as qualifying for those races begins in less than two months.
The one officeholder routinely mentioned as a possible Democratic candidate for Governor, Northern District Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley, does not seem too eager to sign up for such a statewide race, especially after the loss former Democrat Attorney General Jim Hood suffered in 2019. Hood was billed as the Mississippi Democratic Party’s best hope in a decade to win the Governor’s seat but even he could only muster less than 47% of the vote.
Presley, a smart politician, knows the electoral landscape better than most anyone in his party, which could be the reason he, like Young, is not being convinced to jump in headfirst to another election for a different office that is extremely unfavorable for any Democrat at the moment.
Frank Corder
