Mississippi's 4th congressional district
Mississippi's 4th congressional district covers the southeastern region of the state. It includes all of Mississippi's Gulf Coast, stretching ninety miles between the Alabama border to the east and the Louisiana border to the west, and extends north into the Pine Belt region. It includes three of Mississippi's four most heavily populated cities: Gulfport, Biloxi, and Hattiesburg. Other major cities within the district include Bay St. Louis, Laurel, and Pascagoula.[4]
| Mississippi's 4th congressional district | |||
|---|---|---|---|
.tif.png.webp) Mississippi's 4th congressional district - since January 3, 2013. | |||
| Representative |
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| Area | 9,536 sq mi (24,700 km2) | ||
| Distribution |
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| Population (2019) | 775,679[1] | ||
| Median household income | $47,340[2] | ||
| Ethnicity |
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| Occupation |
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| Cook PVI | R+21[3] | ||
The people of the Mississippi's 4th are currently represented by Republican Steven Palazzo. During the 111th Congress, MS-4, along with Texas's 17th congressional district, was the most Republican district in the nation to be represented by a Democrat,[5] with a Cook PVI of R+20. However, on November 2, 2010, the Democratic incumbents of both districts were defeated by their respective Republican challengers. State Representative Steven Palazzo defeated Rep. Gene Taylor by a 5% vote differential.[6]
From statehood to the election of 1846, Mississippi elected representatives at-large statewide on a general ticket.
Cities
Three of Mississippi's four most heavily populated cities, Gulfport, Biloxi, Hattiesburg are in the Fourth District. Other major cities within the district include Bay St. Louis, Laurel, and Pascagoula.
Counties
Since 2013 the entire counties of Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Pearl River, Stone, George, Marion, Lamar, Forrest, Perry, Greene, Jones, and Wayne, along with the southeastern part of Clarke are counted in this district.
Federal highways
Interstate 59 is an important north-south route that traverses the district, while coastal Interstate 10 serves as the major east-west route from New Orleans to Mobile. US Highway 49 is a vital hurricane evacuation route and is four-laned from Gulfport to Jackson. US Highway 84 enters the state near Waynesboro and is four-laned statewide, passing through Laurel, Brookhaven and Natchez.
Boundaries
Prior to 2003, the district included most of Jackson, all of Natchez and the southwestern part of the state. In 2003, after Mississippi lost a seat in redistricting, the old 4th District was eliminated. Most of Jackson, as well as the bulk of the district's black constituents, were drawn into the 2nd District, while most of Jackson's suburbs were drawn into the 3rd District. As a result, most of the old 5th District was redefined as the new 4th District.[7]
The perimeter of the current Fourth District extends across the ninety-mile coastal southern edge of Mississippi from the Louisiana border to the Alabama border, following the Alabama state line north along the eastern border of the state to a point due east of Quitman in Clarke County where it is bounded by the 3rd District and then moves in an irregular fashion south of Quitman until it reaches the county line with Wayne County, and then follows the northern and western borders to wholly contain Jones, Forrest, Lamar, and Marion counties until it reaches the Louisiana state line, ultimately bounded by the Pearl River winding to its outlet in Lake Borgne.
History
The district, like most of Mississippi, is built on a strong history of agriculture.
List of members representing the district
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Recent elections
2002
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Gene Taylor | 121,742 | 75.21 | - | |
| Republican | Dr. Karl Cleveland Mertz | 34,373 | 21.24 | - | |
| Libertarian | Wayne L. Parker | 3,311 | 2.05 | - | |
| Reform | Thomas R. Huffmaster | 2,442 | 1.51 | - | |
| Turnout | 161,868 | ||||
| Majority | 87,369 | 53.98 | |||
2004
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Gene Taylor | 181,614 | 64.77 | -10.44 | |
| Republican | Mike Lott | 96,740 | 34.50 | +13.26 | |
| Reform | Tracella Hill | 2,028 | 0.72 | -0.79 | |
| Turnout | 280,382 | ||||
| Majority | 84,874 | 30.27 | |||
2006
Fourth District incumbent Gene Taylor (D) was re-elected, gathering 80% of the Fourth District's vote. He is considered one of the most conservative Democrats in the House . His district has a Cook Political Report rating of R+16.
Taylor faced challenger Randall "Randy" McDonnell, a former IRS agent. McDonnell, the Republican Party nominee, had also unsuccessfully challenged Taylor in both 1998 and 2000.
Taylor first was elected in 1989 to Mississippi's 5th congressional district, after having lost to Larkin I. Smith in the 1988 race for that open seat, which had been vacated by Trent Lott when Lott made a successful run for the Senate. Smith died eight months later in a plane crash. Taylor came in first in the special election primary to fill the seat, winning the runoff election two weeks later and taking office on October 18, 1989.
In 1990, Taylor won a full term in the 5th District with 81% of the vote, and has been reelected at each election since.
His district was renumbered the 4th after the redistricting of 2000, which cost Mississippi a Congressional seat. In 2004, Taylor was reelected to the House with 64% of their vote, choosing him over both Republican nominee Michael Lott and Reform nominee Tracella Hill.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Gene Taylor | 110,996 | 79.79 | +15.02 | |
| Republican | Randall "Randy" McDonnell | 28,117 | 20.21 | -14.29 | |
| Turnout | 139,113 | ||||
| Majority | 82,879 | 59.58 | |||
2008
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Gene Taylor | 74.54 | -5.25 | ||
| Republican | John McCay | 25.46 | +5.25 | ||
| Turnout | |||||
| Majority | 49.08 | ||||
2010
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Steven Palazzo | 105,613 | 51.93 | +26.47 | |
| Democratic | Gene Taylor | 95,243 | 46.83 | -27.45 | |
| Libertarian | Tim Hampton | 1,741 | 0.86 | +0.86 | |
| Reform | Anna Revies | 787 | 0.39 | +0.39 | |
| Turnout | 203,384 | ||||
| Majority | 9,480 | 4.84 | |||
2012
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Steven Palazzo (incumbent) | 182,998 | 64.1 | |
| Democratic | Matt Moore | 82,344 | 28.9 | |
| Libertarian | Ron Williams | 17,982 | 6.3 | |
| Reform | Robert Claunch | 2,108 | 0.7 | |
| Total votes | 285,432 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
2014
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Steven Palazzo (incumbent) | 108,776 | 69.9 | |
| Democratic | Matt Moore | 37,869 | 24.3 | |
| Independent | Cindy Burleson | 3,684 | 2.4 | |
| Libertarian | Joey Robinson | 3,473 | 2.2 | |
| Reform | Eli Jackson | 917 | 0.6 | |
| Independent | Ed Reich | 857 | 0.6 | |
| Total votes | 155,576 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
2016
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Steven Palazzo (incumbent) | 181,323 | 65.0 | |
| Democratic | Mark Gladney | 77,505 | 27.8 | |
| Libertarian | Richard Blake McCluskey | 14,687 | 5.3 | |
| Reform | Shawn O'Hara | 5,264 | 1.9 | |
| Total votes | 278,779 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
2018
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Steven Palazzo (incumbent) | 152,633 | 68.2 | |
| Democratic | Jeramey Anderson | 68,787 | 30.8 | |
| Reform | Lajena Sheets | 2,312 | 1.0 | |
| Total votes | 223,732 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
2020
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Steven Palazzo (incumbent) | 255,971 | 100.0 | |
| Total votes | 255,971 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
Historical district boundaries
References
- https://www.census.gov/mycd/?st=28&cd=04
- https://www.census.gov/mycd/?st=28&cd=04
- "Partisan Voting Index – Districts of the 115th Congress" (PDF). The Cook Political Report. April 7, 2017. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- "About South Mississippi | U.S. House of Representatives". palazzo.house.gov. Retrieved 2016-01-22.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-03-29. Retrieved 2009-04-05.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- 2010 Mississippi Election Results New York Times. November 12, 2010.
- Almanac of American Politics, 2002, p. 872
- "Secretary of State :: Elections". State of Mississippi Secretary of State. Archived from the original on January 1, 2013. Retrieved December 3, 2012.
- Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
- Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
- Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present