One South Mississippi judicial race ends in upset, another heads to runoff

• Dawn Beam lost her re-election bid to the State Supreme Court while St. Pe and Schloegel appear set to meet in a runoff for a Court of Appeals seat.

Two contested judicial races in South Mississippi were on the ballot in Tuesday’s General Election.

Incumbent Justice Dawn Beam will not return to the State Supreme Court District 2, Position 2 seat she’s held since 2016.

Unofficial results late Tuesday showed challenger David Sullivan winning with just under 55% of the vote with 93% of precincts reporting.

Sullivan is a municipal judge in Harrison County who also serves as a Public Defender in the Circuit Courts of Harrison, Stone, and Pearl River Counties.

Beam previously served for three years as county prosecutor for Lamar County and for five years as a chancellor of the Tenth Chancery District. She is the fourth woman to serve on the state’s highest court, and the first woman from the Southern District.

In the Court of Appeals District 5, Position 2 race, Amy St. Pe and Jennifer Schloegel advanced to a runoff to be held on November 26.

Unofficial results with 92% of precincts in show St. Pe and Schloegel drawing 35% and 33%, respectively, of the vote, with Ian Baker drawing 32% to round out the three-person race. Schloegel and Baker are only separated by 500 votes at this point.

St. Pe has served as a city attorney and municipal judge in Jackson County while practicing law since 2003 while Schloegel is in her fourth term as a Chancery Court Judge for Harrison, Hancock, and Stone Counties. She’s practiced law since 1991.

Baker has practiced law since 2006 and previously served as an Assistant District Attorney.

The three candidates in this South Mississippi judicial race have raised nearly half of million dollars combined this calendar year, with Baker’s campaign raising the least and St. Pe’s raising the most.