Qualifying for Mississippi U.S. Senate, U.S. House candidates opens Tuesday

Candidates looking to run for the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives in the Magnolia State have under two weeks to qualify to run in 2024. See the potential candidates thus far.

With the New Year comes another round of elections in the Magnolia State, this time with a compressed primary season.

Candidates seeking to run for the U.S. Senate or the U.S. House of Representatives have under two weeks to file their statement of intent and pay the required fees. The qualifying period for federal offices in Mississippi opens on Tuesday, January 2nd and runs through Monday, January 15th.

Republican candidates running for Senate or House seats must pay a qualifying fee of $5,000 or $2,500, respectively, to the State Party Executive Committee. Democratic and other political party candidates for Senate or House seats are to pay $1,000 or $500, respectively.

The 2024 Republican and Democratic Primaries will be held in Mississippi on Tuesday, March 12th, with the General Election set for Tuesday, November 5th.

On the Ballot

U.S. Senate

The U.S. Senate seat held by Mississippi’s senior Senator Roger Wicker (R) is up election in the 2024 cycle. A term in the U.S. Senate is for six years.

Wicker has served in the U.S. Senate since 2007 and is the odds-on favorite heading into his re-election bid. He is the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and a senior member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.

According to the most recent Federal Election Commission (FEC) campaign finance reporting at the end of September, Senator Wicker has $4.95 million cash on hand.

Two Republicans look to challenge the incumbent in the March GOP Primary: State Rep. Dan Eubanks and Ret. Colonel Timothy Burton. Neither potential candidate has a current campaign finance report on file with the FEC after filing their statement of candidacy.

On the Democratic side, Ty Pinkins has been running for the U.S. Senate since December 2022 when he filed his statement of candidacy. He took a short hiatus in the fall of 2023 after being named the substitute candidate for Secretary of State for the Democratic Party following the withdrawal of Shuwaski Young. Pinkins lost the 2023 General Election by nearly 20 points to incumbent Republican Secretary of State Michael Watson.

Pinkins shows just over $4,000 cash on hand in his most recent FEC reporting.

No other potential Mississippi senatorial candidates are currently on file with the FEC.

U.S. House

All four of Mississippi’s congressional seats are on the ballot in 2024, with incumbents favored to win in each of the districts as of now. A term in the U.S. House is for two years.

Thus far, 1st District Congressman Trent Kelly (R) and 2nd District Congressman Bennie Thompson (D) are the only potential candidates in their districts to file with the FEC for the 2024 cycle. According to third quarter filings, Kelly and Thompson are sitting on $445,000 and $1.77 million, respectively, cash on hand. Kelly has served in the U.S. House since 2015 while Thompson first won his seat in 1993.

The remaining two congressional districts in the Magnolia State will be the ones to watch in 2024.

In the 3rd District, incumbent Congressman Michael Guest (R), seeking his fourth term, looks to be challenged by Democratic newcomer Angel Rios. Guest reported a cash on hand balance of over $181,000 in his campaign at the end of September. Rios shows zero.

As for the 4th District, first-term incumbent Congressman Mike Ezell (R) appears to have drawn at least two GOP challengers: perennial candidate Carl Boyanton and newcomer Michael McGill. Ezell reported over $150,000 cash on hand in his campaign to close out the third quarter in 2023. Boyanton padded his own campaign account with $500,000 while McGill reported nearly $5,500 cash on hand.

Boyanton endorsed Ezell in 2022’s runoff election over then-Congressman Steven Palazzo. Boyanton ran for 4th District seat in the GOP Primary in 2020 and 2022, failing to break 10% both times. He finished last in a four-man race in 2020 (9.3%) and fifth in a seven-man race in 2022 (6.2%).