Democrats made notable gains in the Mississippi Legislature on Tuesday, flipping multiple seats in a round of special legislative elections held under court-ordered redistricting. The results narrow the Republican supermajority in the state Senate and signal potential shifts in parts of the state where voting power for Black residents was found to have been diluted.
A three-judge federal panel ordered the state to redraw parts of its legislative maps in a July 2024 ruling that the maps adopted in 2022 violated the Voting Rights Act. Tuesday’s elections were the first held under those new district lines.
According to preliminary results released Tuesday night, Democrats appear to have flipped one House seat and two Senate seats that were previously held by Republicans.
In Senate District 45, which includes portions of Forrest and Lamar counties, former Hattiesburg mayor Johnny DuPree defeated Republican candidate Anna Rush. In Senate District 2 in DeSoto and Tunica counties, Democrat Theresa Isom won over Republican Charlie Hoots. And in Senate District 11, which stretches across several Delta counties, Democratic incumbent Reginald Jackson leads Republican challenger Kendall Prewett by just 13 votes.
If those results hold, they would take the Senate split to 34 Republicans and 16 Democrats, with two seats still undetermined.
The remaining contests in Senate Districts 24 and 26 are now headed to runoff elections later this month after crowded fields prevented any candidate from securing the majority required to win outright. The seats were not part of the court-ordered redistricting, but became vacant earlier this year when longtime Democratic lawmakers left office.
Those races are nonpartisan, but both districts are majority-Black and have traditionally leaned Democratic.
If the winners of both runoffs caucus with the Democrats, Republicans would still hold a three-fifths majority, which is required to pass budget and revenue legislation. However, losing the two seats would bring the GOP below the two-thirds threshold needed to override a governor’s veto without Democratic support.
The shift could have long-term implications for the upcoming legislative session, especially if political dynamics or priorities differ between Lt. Gov Delbert Hosemann and Gov. Tate Reeves.
Both state parties, as well as national party organizations, have treated the special elections as a test of political momentum ahead of the 2026 congressional midterms and 2027 statewide cycle.
County election officials will continue to process absentee ballots and update vote counts over the next several days.