Former Schumer chief counsel challenging Thompson in Mississippi’s 2nd Congressional District

• Evan Turnage enters the race, saying he has access in Washington D.C. Bennie Thompson doesn’t have. The MS-02 race is shaping up to be one of Thompson’s most contested cycles in his 32 years in office. He now has a Democrat challenger along with an Independent and two Republicans in the race.

Evan Turnage was born in Mississippi’s 2nd Congressional District in 1992.

“This was the poorest district and the poorest state in the country,” Turnage said of the Mississippi Delta region.

The next year, then-Hinds County Supervisor Bennie Thompson, a Democrat, became the district’s congressman. He has won re-election every two years since despite the continued economic hardships and loss of population in the area.

“Unfortunately, that’s still the case today 33 years later,” Turnage, also a Democrat, told Magnolia Tribune.

Now, Turnage, a former Chief Counsel for U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D) and U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D), believes the Mississippi Delta region needs a change of representation in the nation’s capital. That is why he is running to unseat Thompson.

“We need plans for real change right now and I think that I have a particular set of assets that I’m looking to use in the district for the betterment,” Turnage said.

Other than a few years post-Civil War during the Reconstruction era and four years in the early 1980s, voters in the 2nd Congressional District have elected a Democrat. As for its demographics, the 28-county district is roughly 63% black and 32% white.

Turnage said he believes people are frustrated with government and for good reason.

“I agree with that because the government has not done everything that it could to make lives better here in Mississippi,” he said. “We need a representative in this district who’s going to stand up to cheating corporations, who won’t take a dime of corporate money as our congressman has over the years, and who’s going to represent a cleaner politics that fights for the people instead of for financial gain for himself and for the cheating corporations exploiting us every day.”

A Yale-trained antitrust lawyer, Turnage was the lead architect of numerous federal bills while serving on Capitol Hill that were supported widely by the Democratic caucus such as Senator Warren’s Price Gouging Prevention Act, a key piece of former Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign, and Senator Schumer’s No Kings Act.

Turnage said he does not feel “entitled” to the seat and Thompson “isn’t entitled to it either.”

When asked how his policies and priorities would differ from Thompson, Turnage said the long-term incumbent “doesn’t have any plans or policies for tackling the crisis of the proverty here, for tackling the crisis of affordability here.”

“We haven’t heard anything about a fairer tax system from him. We haven’t heard anything about real accountability for cheating corporations here. It all starts with a plan,” Turnage said. “I don’t believe anybody can wave a wand in one day and in one day change things, but it starts with having an actual plan to address real problems.”

Turnage added that Congressman Thompson has had this mantel for over 30 years as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives.

“But to get things done in Washington it takes relationships in both the House and the Senate,” Turnage said. “I’m somebody who can walk into Chuck Schumer’s office on day one and talk to him about setting an agenda in the Senate that is helpful for Mississippians because I’ve had that sort of access to Chuck for the last several years and helped shape his agenda for the last several years.”

“Congressman Thompson doesn’t have that sort of access in the Senate, but I do,” Turnage emphasized.

Thompson has been viewed as a kingmaker of sorts within the Mississippi Democratic Party, often using his iconic status among party leadership to steer candidates into municipal, county and legislative races. Yet, as Turnage sees it, Thompson’s grip is not as tight as it once was.

“It doesn’t always work out in his favor. Just here in Jackson, we had a [state] senate runoff where Congressman Thompson backed somebody – Letitia Johnson. She handily lost to Kamesha Mumford because Mumford had the people on her side,” Turnage said. “I think that the old guard regime, of course it exists, but it is not as successful as it used to be. It doesn’t have the power that it used to.”

Turnage left Schumer’s office earlier this year and joined the Open Markets Institute as the director of the Southern Justice Project. Launched as an independent organization in September 2017, Open Markets “uses research and journalism to expose the dangers of monopolization, identifies changes in policy and law to address them, and educates policymakers, academics, movement groups, and other influential stakeholders to establish open, competitive markets that support a strong, just, and inclusive democracy,” per the institute’s website.

The “affordability crisis” is a priority for Turnage as he seeks to win the people’s backing in the 2nd Congressional District.

“When I talk to people across this district they are telling me every day about higher grocery prices. We need actual plans to address the affordability crisis in this country back,” Turnage said. “Back in 2021 when the CEO of Kroger bragged about how a little bit of inflation was good for business, he was saying the quiet part out loud that corporations are jacking up prices because they can get away with it.”

State lawmakers redrew the 2nd Congressional District after the 2020 Census, extending its boundaries from near the Tennessee line down the Mississippi River to the state’s southwest corner and eastward into the middle of the state. This was a significant change aimed at maintaining Mississippi’s lone majority-minority congressional district as nearly 65,000 citizens moved out of the district and into other parts of Mississippi over the previous ten years.

Turnage recognizes that cutting into Thompson’s stronghold on the region will be a challenge.

“It’s going to be a challenge for anybody in such a geographically large district, but I have relationships and connections across the district. I’m based in Jackson, but I’ve also lived in Cleveland where I still have family,” Turnage said. “It’s just going to take a huge movement. It’s going take a lot of volunteer work, it’s going take a lot of resources but we’re going to be everywhere and anywhere. We’re going to meet people where they are. We’re going to use every tool that we have.”

The newcomer to the race starts at a significant financial disadvantage in terms of campaign funds, with Thompson amassing nearly $1.67 million in his coffers. Yet, Turnage believes he can compete given his relationships both in-state and in the Capital Beltway.

A Broader Look at the Race

Congressman Thompson is widely viewed as nearly untouchable in the 2nd Congressional District, having easily won re-election after re-election over the last 30 years. Thompson has become an esteemed and reliable vote for House Democrats, willing to step into controversial roles, such as leading former Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s January 6th Committee, while taking positions that run counter to many Mississippi voters.

Just last week, Thompson came under fire for calling the ambush-style attack in Washington, D.C. in November on two West Virginia National Guardsmen an “unfortunate accident.” The comment drew swift reaction from his home state and across the country, with many calling on Thompson to resign. He later walked back his remarks, saying he misspoke.

READ MORE: Damage Control: Thompson says he misspoke when referring to attack on National Guardsmen as an “unfortunate accident”

Despite his lengthy tenure and oft controversial remarks, voters in the 2nd District, much of which encompasses the poorest parts of Mississippi, continues to send him back to Washington D.C. as their Congressman. 

While Thompson and Turnage look to be the only Democrats in the 2nd Congressional District race, that does not mean the Democratic nominee will be automatically anointed as the winner in the 2026 midterm. The race is shaping up to be one of Thompson’s most contested elections in years.

Another political newcomer named Bennie Foster is actively campaigning for the House seat. Foster, who works in ministry, originally filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission to run as a Democrat in April. But on Monday the FEC shows that Foster switched his affiliation to Independent. This means Foster would go through to the November General Election and avoid what is arguably a likely loss in the Democratic Primary.

Foster’s campaign is based on asking voters to “reimagine Mississippi together.”

“We are navigating through troubled yet stagnant waters. I am running to be a bridge to progress for this district. My campaign is about implementation—solutions forged right here in our communities,” Foster shares on his campaign website. “It’s time to move beyond rhetoric. We demand Results over Rhetoric.”

Foster is advocating for “the principles, policies, and laws that will bring livable wages, improve health conditions, and ensure the safety of our communities.”

Foster believes this can be done by driving economic growth in the district through resource maximization in trades, health care, agriculture, childcare, education, and arts. 

On the Republican side, it was announced late last week that Kevin Wilson, the President of the Adams County Board of Supervisors and a lucrative oilman, has entered the Republican Primary race. Wilson is Mississippi’s largest independent oil and natural gas producer. He won his first political race in 2019 to the Adams County Board of Supervisors and then won re-election four years later.

READ MORE: Adams County Supervisor, oilman Kevin Wilson seeks to unseat Bennie Thompson

His goal is to unseat incumbent Democrat Bennie Thompson “to bring a practical voice to Washington that puts people first.” Wilson is expected to be able to raise significant campaign funds for his run.

“Mississippi’s 2nd District deserves a representative who understands how federal decisions affect communities and working families,” said Wilson. “I’ve spent my career creating jobs, producing energy here in Mississippi, and working at the local level to solve real problems. I’m running for Congress to bring a practical voice to Washington that puts people first.”

Wilson will begin meeting with voters across the district in the coming weeks to discuss priorities as he kicks off his campaign with a bus tour.

In addition to Wilson, Ron Eller is making another bid for the Delta House seat. This will be his third consecutive cycle trying to unseat Thompson.

Eller pulled in 32% of the vote in the 2022 GOP Primary, forcing a runoff with then-candidate Brian Flowers. Eller lost that runoff to Flowers, only winning 42%.

Eller then ran in 2024 against Andrew Smith, this time securing the Republican Party nomination by winning 77% of the vote. Eller went on to lose to Thompson in the General Election by a vote of 62% to 38%.

Eller reported $44,000 cash on hand as of the third quarter reporting period with the FEC. 

Other candidates still have time to enter the race should they choose.

The qualifying period for those running for a seat in the U.S. House or U.S. Senate in Mississippi began December 1 and ends December 26.

Party primary elections will be held March 10, 2026, and the General Election is slated for November 3, 2026.