The commission tasked with selecting a new Mississippi flag has narrowed choices to two. One has a shield and is commonly referred to as the “Great River Flag.” The other has a magnolia blossom on a dark blue background with red stripes on each end. Their decision comes after five proposals, one-by-one, were literally run up a flagpole outside the Old Capitol in Jackson yesterday.
"This is not about my flag," said Sherri Carr Bevis of Gulport. She is part of the 9-member commission.
"This is about the people of Mississippi and what the people want. And I think if we did eliminate one or two, possibly, we would maybe get a better idea."
Commissioner TJ Taylor of Madison agreed.
"I think we will have a week where people can decide: 'If I like a shield flag?' Or, 'if I like a magnolia flag?' And it would just be head-to-head and we will see which one," said Taylor.
Flag commissioners are asking for public input in the poll on the department of archives and history's website. However, they are not obligated to select the flag that receives the most votes. Legislators voted in late June to retire the 126-year-old Mississippi banner with its Confederate emblem. The new flag cannot include the emblem but must include the phrase "In God We Trust." Commissioners will choose one design at a meeting on September 2 to go on the November ballot.
