Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves has cancelled a special legislative session scheduled for next week to redraw the state’s supreme court districts, but confirmed that congressional redistricting will proceed before the 2027 elections. The Republican governor made the announcement on Wednesday during an appearance on a conservative talk radio network.
Reeves indicated that redrawing the state’s four congressional districts to favour Republicans ahead of the November midterms would be difficult, as Mississippi’s primary elections were held in March. Altering the maps now could invalidate those results and potentially make some Republican-held seats more competitive by adding Democratic voters.
The governor explicitly targeted the seat of Bennie Thompson, the state’s only Democratic congressman and the longest-serving Black elected official in Congress. Thompson represents Mississippi’s second congressional district, which includes the predominantly Black Mississippi Delta region.
“It is not a question of if, it’s a question of when,” Reeves said of redrawing the district. He added that he is coordinating with the Trump administration on the timing and method of redistricting for both congressional and legislative boundaries.
