Mississippi GOP gearing up for battle

Despite MS's strong rightward tilt in federal elections, the state is still dominated by the Democratic Party. Indeed, the only statewide elected Republican is the state auditor.

However, bolstered by last week's victories, the state GOP is gearing up for the state's 2003 elections. They face an uphill battle:

While Mississippi has been solidly in the Republican corner in presidential elections, in state elections Mississippi is still essentially Democratic. Currently, state Auditor Phil Bryant is the only Republican statewide elected official. The other statewide officials are all Democrats.

And the Mississippi Legislature is primarily Democratic. There are 33 Republicans in the 122-member House and 19 Republicans in the 52-member Senate. Herring said the party's goal is to reach parity with the Democrats in the Senate and pick up about 10 seats in the House. He pointed out 42 Republicans in the House would give a Republican governor a veto-proof margin. It takes a two-thirds majority in each chamber to override a governor's veto.

Given those numbers, it's amazing Democrats can't even get a Blue Dog elected to federal office.

As for 2003, former GOP chair Haley Barbour appears interested in running for governor. If so, he can probably count on strong support from Bush (who will probably find time between his fundraising and vacations to make an appearance or two). And as one of the few marquee elections in 2003, the contest should provide a good barometer of the president's strength heading into the 2004 campaign season.

(Courtesy of Political Wire.)

Posted November 13, 2002 01:14 PM | Comments (79)