Mississippi redistricting sparks protests as midterm battles heat up

Capital packed for final redistricting hearing

Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the Mississippi State Capitol in Jackson on Thursday night, chanting "Leave our maps alone" as a joint legislative committee wrapped up its final public hearing on redrawing the state's political boundaries.

The demonstration marked the end of an eight-stop statewide tour by lawmakers tasked with drafting new legislative maps. The process was triggered after Governor Tate Reeves floated, then cancelled, plans for a special legislative session following the US Supreme Court's decision in Louisiana v Callais, which weakened provisions of the Voting Rights Act. Instead, Reeves has signaled that the redraw can wait until the 2027 elections.

Critics warn the process is being handled by a handpicked, overwhelmingly white Republican committee designed to protect partisan interests. The panel is made up of 16 Republicans—all but one of whom are white—and four Democrats, all of whom are Black. At the Jackson hearing, the committee offered no details on how the new maps would be drawn, nor did they explain how the public testimony would be factored into their final decisions.

A history of voting battles

Speakers at the pre-hearing rally drew direct parallels to Mississippi’s long history of disenfranchisement, pointing back to the 1890 constitution that ushered in the Jim Crow era.

"This fight is familiar territory for all of us," Safia Malin, policy director at the civic group One Voice, told the crowd.

Inside the packed legislative chamber, 67 people spoke, each rationed to just two minutes. Several speakers described the high stakes in starkly personal terms. Jesse Otto Smith, 76, told the panel that his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather—who was born enslaved—were all denied the right to vote in Mississippi.

The hearing also turned contentious. State Auditor Shad White, who is widely expected to run for governor, drew loud boos from the crowd when he attacked US Representative Bennie Thompson, the state's only Democratic congressman. White claimed a "silent majority" in the Mississippi Delta wanted better representation than Thompson. The state's Republican leadership has openly targeted Thompson’s seat ahead of his next scheduled re-election campaign in 2028.

National money and Senate races

The fight over boundaries has spilled directly into the state's active midterm campaigns. US Senator Cory Booker, a Democrat from New Jersey, is arriving in Gulfport on Friday to campaign alongside Scott Colom. Colom is trying to unseat the heavily favoured incumbent Republican US Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith in the November general election.

Booker’s visit coincides with a broader national effort. An aide for Booker confirmed his political operation is directing six-figure sums toward protecting Black representation in seven Southern states, including Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana.

"The Supreme Court makes rulings, but the American people can make movements," Booker said in a statement ahead of his trip.

Despite the political friction and growing voter anxiety over inflation, political analysts expect the status quo to hold in Mississippi's federal races. While national polling from Civiqs shows Donald Trump’s approval rating has fallen to 34 per cent, he remains highly popular in Mississippi. Among white voters in the state, Trump maintains a 63 per cent approval rating, providing a strong tailwind for Hyde-Smith and the state’s three Republican congressmen.