Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Mississippi's Constitution Could Allow Its Republican State Legislature to Overturn Voters' Choice for Governor in November

Mississippi's Constitution Could Allow Its Republican State Legislature to Overturn Voters' Choice for Governor in November
Brandon Dill for The Washington Post via Getty Images

Not okay.

Early next month, Mississippi will elect a new governor—but it may not be the Mississippi public who elects him.

Republican Governor Phil Bryant is coming to the end of his second term, setting the stage for a showdown between current Republican Lieutenant Governor Tate Reeves and Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood.


However, an obscure 1890 provision in the state's post-Reconstruction Constitution may pose a problem to the legitimacy of the election results.

Ratified during the Jim Crow era, which saw African Americans in Mississippi greatly disenfranchised and subject to rampant racist violence, the state Constitution mandates that even if a gubernatorial candidate achieves a majority of the statewide vote, he or she must also win a majority of Mississippi's 122 congressional districts. If the standard isn't met, the decision could be left to the Republican-dominated House of Representatives.

Though Mississippi has the second highest Black population in the Union at 38%, only 42 of its Congressional districts are majority-black—20 districts short of a majority.

Scholars say the 1890 provision was adopted for the express purpose of nullifying the Black vote, since—due to the prevalence of slavery in the Antebellum era—Mississippi still had one of the highest African American populations in the country at the time of its ratification.

Echoes of widespread voter suppression from the Jim Crow Era, like that of this provision, continue to suppress Black voters.

Now, four Black Mississippians are determined to change that.

The longtime voters—two of whom were subject to poll taxes and three of whom were made to take tests before they could register to vote—have filed a complaint to strike down the provision.

The complaint states:

“The Popular-Vote Rule ensures that even when African-American-preferred candidates generate enough support to win a plurality of votes, they are unlikely to be elected.”

The case, McLemore v. Hosemann, will be heard by a federal Judge in the capital city of Jackson—a Civil Rights-era battleground in which the state's recently-opened Civil Rights museum resides.

Many feel that the repeal of the provision is long overdue.

Republicans representing the defendants admit that the provision was founded on white supremacist efforts, but that but assert that the plaintiffs are claiming discrimination based on their political party, not racial discrimination.

The case began oral arguments on Friday morning.

More from News

Screenshot of Stephen Colbert
CBS

Stephen Colbert Makes Somber Plea To Americans In Wake Of Charlie Kirk's Death

Late-night host Stephen Colbert had a somber message for Americans as he addressed the assassination of far-right activist Charlie Kirk, stressing that "political violence only leads to more political violence."

Kirk died after an unidentified gunman shot him in the neck as he—ironically enough—mocked victims of gun violence at an event in Utah Valley State University. Kirk's murder has galvanized the far-right, with President Donald Trump and his surrogates claiming without evidence that rhetoric from Democrats is responsible for Kirk's death.

Keep ReadingShow less
a woman sunbathing on rocks.
a person sitting on a towel on a beach
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

People Share The Weirdest Flexes They Heard Someone Say With A Straight Face

It is never attractive to gloat.

Even so, some people can't help but brag, or "flex" as it is sometimes known, about certain accomplishments or attributes.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @thedowntheredoc's TikTok video
@thedowntheredoc/TikTok

TikToker Hilariously Calls Out Target After Champion Pants Feature Awkwardly-Placed Front Pleat

Sometimes you can just tell when something was designed *for* women, but was not actually designed *by* women.

Take, for instance, the new pleated pants available at Target from the Champion clothing line. While there's nothing wrong with pleated pants and they certainly have a suitable spot in the workplace, the latest rendition of Champion pleated pants are, shall we say, NSFW.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @kaicutch's Instagram video
@kaicutch/Instagram

Woman Flips Her Car After Belting Out Ironic Britney Spears Lyric In Wild Viral Video

Whether we want to admit it or not, we've all had our fair share of carpool karaoke and maybe even imagined our car as our own personal recording studio.

But TikToker and Instagrammer Kaitlynn McCutcheon may have gotten too into her performance of Britney Spears' classic, "Hit Me Baby, One More Time," when the road and her car both said, "Bet."

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from ​@lynnshazeen's TikTok video
@lynnshazeen/TikTok

Woman Goes Viral After Revealing How Her Obsession With Matcha Landed Her In The Hospital

Let's be honest: Too much of anything isn't good for us. It's all about the balance!

But the media and social media trends have taught us that certain things are really good for us, encouraging us to be like the "very mindful and very demure" girls and take care of ourselves. One such example is drinking more matcha, especially if you really like coffee or think you have a caffeine addiction.

Keep ReadingShow less