EL SEGUNDO — The Chargers used the first of their three fourth-round draft picks to take Mississippi State wide receiver Brenen Thompson 105th overall in the NFL draft Saturday morning. General Manager Joe Hortiz then traded up to take Memphis tackle Travis Burke at No. 117 with the second of his three fourth-round picks.

Hortiz sent the Houston Texans picks in the fourth (123rd) and sixth rounds (204th) to select Burke in the fourth round (117th), his third trade in two days. The Chargers began the day with seven picks in the final four rounds of the three-day draft in Pittsburgh.

In addition, the Chargers have one pick in the fifth round (145th) and two in the sixth (202nd and 206th). They didn’t have a seventh-round selection, however. They entered the draft with only five picks, but trades with the New England Patriots and Cleveland Browns netted an additional four.

The Chargers had only picks on the final day, but ended up with seven.

Thompson clocked a 4.26-second time in the 40-yard dash at the draft combine in Indianapolis in February, said to be the third-fastest time recorded by a wide receiver. Burke was officially listed at 6-foot-8¾ and 325 pounds at the combine.

“It’s God-given,” Thompson said of his speed. “I’ve always been fast my whole life. I’m so excited. It’s a perfect fit I’m excited to get with (Chargers offensive coordinator Mike) McDaniel and get to work. I’d say I’m explosive as a route runner. I think I’m going to fit in perfectly.”

The Chargers completed their fourth-round selections by taking University of Arizona safety Genesis Smith with the 131st overall pick. They used their lone pick in the fifth round to pick South Carolina defensive tackle Nick Barrett (145th), ending a run of four consecutive offensive players.

More to come on this story.

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves on Friday announced he will call a special session for judicial redistricting once the U.S. Supreme Court rules on a Voting Rights Act case that has broad implications for minority representation throughout the country.

During oral arguments last fall, the Supreme Court appeared poised to strike down Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which has been used to counter racially discriminatory election practices. A decision in the case, Louisiana v. Callais, is expected before the court’s term ends in June.

Overturning Section 2 would give state legislatures and local governments the opportunity to redraw maps while preventing minority voters from challenging ones that dilute their influence.. A decision wiping out a pillar of the 1965 Voting Rights Act could help Republicans gain seats in the U.S. House by eliminating Democratic-leaning districts that are majority Black or Latino, especially in the South. Most of those redraws would not happen in time for this year’s midterm elections.

The special session proclamation, signed by Reeves on Thursday, relates to a specific case involving judicial districts for the Mississippi Supreme Court. Last August, a federal judge ordered Mississippi to redraw its Supreme Court electoral map after finding it violated Section 2 by diluting the power of Black voters.

In his proclamation, Reeves wrote that the lack of a ruling in the Louisiana case “deprived the Mississippi Legislature of its undisputed federally recognized right’ to remedy the Section 2 violation.

The governor in a social media post said he hoped the Supreme Court “will reaffirm the animating principle that all Americans are created equal.” He said the Legislature will convene the special session 21 days after the Supreme Court issues its ruling in the Louisiana case.

We also witnessed moments of majesty. On the fifth day, the Integrity began using the Moon’s gravity to slingshot our astronauts back home. That trajectory led the crew around the Moon, farther from Earth than any humans have ever gone. As the explorers looked upon outer space, they captured stunning images. Among the most remarkable is Earthset, in which Commander Reid Wiseman photographed Earth as it appeared to fall below the horizon of the moon.

When their spacecraft returned to Earth’s atmosphere, the crew was traveling nearly 35 times faster than the speed of sound. Ten minutes later, a series of parachutes began opening. Eventually, the spacecraft’s speed fell to 20 miles per hour, and the crew splashed down into the Pacific Ocean.

Mississippi was once again there to assist. The astronauts were greeted by the USS John P. Murtha, a U.S. military vessel built in the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula. The ship’s amphibious design was suited to welcome the space travelers home—equipped with a helicopter pad, medical facilities, and the communications system needed to locate and recover the astronauts safely. Crucially, the USS Murtha was built with a well deck, a sea-based garage that stored the Integrity on the journey to shore.

Artemis II was a resounding success, paving the way for planned future flights. When the Artemis program returns humans to the moon, Mississippi will be there every step of the way.

Roger Wicker, a Mississippi Republican, represents the state in the U.S. Senate.