One estimate shows Democrats could lose as many as 24 seats in the Mississippi Legislature from GOP-led gerrymandering, the state party chairman said Tuesday.
At a news conference in Jackson, Rep. Cheikh Taylor, Democratic Party chairman, said he has reviewed maps Republicans might adopt in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Louisiana v. Callais ruling, which gutted part of the Voting Rights Act.
Taylor said he fears Democrats could lose as many as 17 seats in the House and 7 seats in the Senate. He also cited a report published last fall in anticipation of the Callais decision by voting rights organizations Fair Fight Action and Black Voters Matter. The report said nearly half of the state’s Black-majority districts, 29, could be eliminated if Republicans adopt an aggressive redistricting strategy encouraged by some in the majority party.
The impact of the Supreme Court decision is almost certain to trickle down to the state and local level, as the decision significantly narrows how courts can require states to account for race in redistricting. And in Mississippi and across the Deep South, race and party affiliation are intertwined.
The majority-white, Republican-dominated Mississippi Legislature has already formed special committees in both chambers to consider redistricting ahead of the 2027 legislative session.
Taylor’s remarks came a day after the U.S. Supreme Court reversed a lower federal court’s ruling that determined Mississippi lawmakers unlawfully diluted Black voting strength when it redrew the state’s legislative districts in 2022.
Rep. Cheikh Taylor, chairman of the Mississippi Democratic Party. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi TodayRepublicans already hold near supermajorities in both chambers of the Legislature, but several state officials have urged the Legislature to draw maps to cement even stronger majorities. Many Republicans in Mississippi have also said the state should redraw its congressional maps to oust U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, the lone Democrat and lone Black member of the state’s delegation.
Republican Gov. Tate Reeves called off a special session he initially ordered to redraw state Supreme Court districts in light of the Callais decision. But in a radio interview, Reeves said it was only a matter of time before Republicans moved to target Thompson.
“The tenure of Congressman Bennie Thompson reigning terror on the 2nd Congressional District is over,” Reeves said. “It’s not a question of if. It’s a question of when.”
On Tuesday, Taylor condemned Reeves’ remarks as “dog whistles,” and said Republicans were poised to target Black representation across Mississippi’s political system. He also said moves by Mississippi Republicans to redraw maps would likely be met with litigation.
“When people say race no longer matters, while simultaneously redrawing districts, weakening protections and targeting Black voting power, we must call it what it is: hypocrisy, moral decay and political cowardice disguised as constitutional principle,” Taylor said. “The same forces framing America as suddenly colorblind are the same forces that continue manipulating systems to dilute Black voices and Black communities working together to make sure that their issues are heard.”
Taylor also vowed Democrats would mobilize to counter Republicans’ “power grab.” On Wednesday, voting rights advocates are set to host a rally at the Jackson Convention Center in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent rulings and subsequent calls to redraw Mississippi’s electoral maps. Attendees scheduled to appear include Thompson, NAACP President Derrick Johnson, Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate Scott Colom and the daughter of the late Medgar Evers, Reena Evers-Everette.
“We will continue organizing, we will continue educating, mobilizing and building leadership in every corner of Mississippi, from the Delta to the Coast, from Jackson to the smallest rural community. Every church house and every college campus,” Taylor said. “Our fight is not over, and in many ways it’s just the beginning.”
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