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Mississippi High School Girls Basketball 2026 Playoff Brackets, Schedule (MHSAA) – February 17, 2026

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Mississippi High School Girls Basketball 2026 Playoff Brackets, Schedule (MHSAA) – February 17, 2026


The 2026 Mississippi high school girls basketball state championships continue on Tueday, February 17.

High School On SI has brackets for every classification in the Mississippi high school girls basketball playoffs. The playoffs culminate with the championship games on March 6.

2026 Mississippi (MHSAA) Class 1A Girls Basketball State Championship Bracket   (select to view full bracket details)

First Round Matchups

Ashland at Wheeler – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Wheeler 47, Ashland 11)

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Calhoun City at Okolona – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Okolona 60, Calhoun City 28)

Pine Grove at Blue Mountain – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Blue Mountain 51, Pine Grove 48)

Smithville at West Tallahatchie – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: West Tallahatchie 32, Smithville 29)

Riverside at Sebastopol – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Sebastopol 54, Riverside 31)

Taylorsville at Bogue Chitto – Monday, February 16, 5:30pm CST (Final: Bogue Chitto 56, Taylorsville 45)

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Ethel at Simmons – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Simmons 66, Ethel 29)

Mount Olive at Lumberton – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Lumberton 51, Mount Olive 12)

Coffeeville at Ingomar – Tuesday, February 17, 6:00pm CST

Byers at Thrasher – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Thrasher 51, Byers 45)

West Lowndes at Vardaman – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Vardaman 42, West Lowndes 31)

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Biggersville at Hickory Flat – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Biggersville 67, Hickory Flat 43)

Stringer at West Lincoln – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: West Lincoln 60, Stringer 15)

South Delta at McAdams – Monday, February 16, 5:00pm CST (Final: McAdams 55, South Delta 30)

Mississippi School for the Deaf at Richton – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Richton 12, Mississippi School for the Deaf 0)

Leake County at Shaw – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Leake County 42, Shaw 33)

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Second Round Matchups

Okolona at Wheeler – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

West Tallahatchie at Blue Mountain – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Bogue Chitto at Sebastopol – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Lumberton at Simmons – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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Thrasher at Ingomar/Coffeeville winner – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Biggersville at Vardaman – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

McAdams at West Lincoln – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Leake County at Richton – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

2026 Mississippi (MHSAA) Class 2A Girls Basketball State Championship Bracket 

First Round Matchups

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Bruce at Walnut – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Walnut 73, Bruce 21)

Philadelphia at Charleston – Tuesday, February 17, 6:00pm CST

Hatley at East Union – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: East Union 68, Hatley 33)

J.Z. George at Velma Jackson – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Velma Jackson 61, J.Z. George 23)

Mize at Newton – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Newton 67, Mize 10)

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Perry Central at Enterprise (Brookhaven) – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Enterprise 29, Perry Central 27)

Pelahatchie at Heidelberg – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Heidelberg 55, Pelahatchie 24)

Wesson at Collins – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Collins 55, Wesson 36)

East Webster at North Side – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: North Side 41, East Webster 32)

Water Valley at New Site – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: New Site 85, Water Valley 36)

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Leland at Kemper County – Tuesday, February 17, 6:00pm CST

Baldwyn at Myrtle – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Baldwyn 48, Myrtle 40)

East Marion at Loyd Star – Tuesday, February 17, 6:00pm CST

Enterprise Clarke at Lake – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Lake 41, Enterprise Clarke 34)

Wilkinson County at North Forrest – Tuesday, February 17, 6:00pm CST

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Scott Central at Bay Springs – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Scott Central 48, Bay Springs 46)

Second Round Matchups

Philadelphia/Charleston winner at Walnut – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Velma Jackson at East Union – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Enterprise (Brookhaven) at Newton – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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Collins at Heidelberg – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

New Site at North Side – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Baldwyn at Leland/Kemper County winner – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Lake at East Marion/Loyd Star winner – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Scott Central at Wilkinson County/North Forrest winner – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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2026 Mississippi (MHSAA) Class 3A Girls Basketball State Championship Bracket 

First Round Matchups

Coahoma County at Booneville – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Booneville 57, Coahoma County 15)

Nettleton at Yazoo County – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Yazoo County 47, Nettleton 21)

Alcorn Central at Independence – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Independence 60, Alcorn Central 46)

Humphreys County at Noxubee County – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Humphreys County 51, Noxubee County 29)

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Seminary at Pisgah – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Pisgah 61, Seminary 16)

Presbyterian Christian at Franklin County – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Franklin County 44, Presbyterian Christian 41)

St. Andrew’s Episcopal at Jefferson Davis County – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Jefferson Davis County 51, St. Andrew’s Episcopal 45)

Crystal Springs at St. Patrick – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: St. Patrick 43, Crystal Springs 34)

Aberdeen at Thomas E. Edwards – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Thomas E. Edwards 59, Aberdeen 21)

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North Panola at Belmont – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Belmont 64, North Panola 38)

O’Bannon at Choctaw County – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Choctaw County 48, O’Bannon 20)

Kossuth at Holly Springs – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Kossuth 58, Holly Springs 55)

West Marion at Jefferson County – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Jefferson County 53, West Marion 32)

McLaurin at Southeast Lauderdale – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Southeast Lauderdale 46, McLaurin 12)

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Hazlehurst at Our Lady Academy – Monday, February 16, 7:00pm CST (Final: Our Lady Academy 61, Hazlehurst 23)

Quitman at Magee – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Quitman 64, Magee 24)

Second Round Matchups

Yazoo County at Booneville – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Humphreys County at Independence – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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Franklin County at Pisgah – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

St. Patrick at Jefferson Davis County – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Belmont at Thomas E. Edwards – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Kossuth at Choctaw County – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Southeast Lauderdale at Jefferson County – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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Quitman at Our Lady Academy – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

2026 Mississippi (MHSAA) Class 4A Girls Basketball State Championship Bracket 

First Round Matchups

Shannon at Tishomingo County – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Tishomingo County 61, Shannon 18)

Yazoo City at Ripley – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Ripley 52, Yazoo City 45)

Corinth at Itawamba Agricultural – Wednesday, February 18, 6:00pm CST

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Clarksdale at Kosciusko – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Clarksdale 37, Kosciusko 34)

Mendenhall at Choctaw Central – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Choctaw Central 75, Mendenhall 20)

Forrest County Agricultural at Lawrence County – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Lawrence County 56, Forrest County Agricultural 42)

West Lauderdale at Morton – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Morton 67, West Lauderdale 35)

South Pike at Greene County – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Greene County 49, South Pike 38)

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Greenwood at Senatobia – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Senatobia 55, Greenwood 45)

Mooreville at South Pontotoc – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Mooreville 58, South Pontotoc 43)

Rosa Fort at Louisville – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Louisville 72, Rosa Fort 19)

New Albany at Houston – Monday, February 16, 7:00pm CST (Final: Houston 75, New Albany 45)

Bay High at Columbia – Wednesday, February 18, 6:00pm CST

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Raymond at Newton County – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Newton County 56, Raymond 28)

McComb at Moss Point – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Moss Point 54, McComb 29)

Northeast Lauderdale at Forest – Monday, February 16, 6:00pm CST (Final: Northeast Lauderdale 41, Forest 35)

Second Round Matchups

Ripley at Tishomingo County – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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Clarksdale at Corinth/Itawamba Agricultural winner – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Lawrence County at Choctaw Central – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Greene County at Morton – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Mooreville at Senatobia – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Houston at Louisville – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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Newton County at Bay High/Columbia winner – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Northeast Lauderdale at Moss Point – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

2026 Mississippi (MHSAA) Class 5A Girls Basketball State Championship Bracket 

First Round Matchups

Cleveland Central at Pontotoc – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Columbus at Florence – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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East Central at Laurel – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

North Pike at Northeast Jones – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Caledonia at Holmes County Central – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Lanier at New Hope – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Sumrall at Wayne County – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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Purvis at Brookhaven – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

2026 Mississippi (MHSAA) Class 6A Girls Basketball State Championship Bracket 

First Round Matchups

Callaway at Olive Branch – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Grenada at Canton – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Pearl River Central at West Jones – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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Terry at Picayune – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Lake Cormorant at Neshoba Central – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Ridgeland at South Panola – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Hattiesburg at Hancock – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Pascagoula at Forest Hill – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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2026 Mississippi (MHSAA) Class 7A Girls Basketball State Championship Bracket 

First Round Matchups

Oxford at Tupelo – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Horn Lake at Madison Central – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Gulfport at Northwest Rankin – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Meridian at Harrison Central – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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Hernando at Starkville – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Clinton at DeSoto Central – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

Pearl at Biloxi – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

West Harrison at Brandon – Friday, February 20, 6:00pm CST

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Mississippi Lottery Mississippi Match 5, Cash 3 results for June 2, 2026

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Mississippi Lottery Mississippi Match 5, Cash 3 results for June 2, 2026


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The Mississippi Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at June 2, 2026, results for each game:

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Winning Mississippi Match 5 numbers from June 2 drawing

05-14-16-33-35

Check Mississippi Match 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash 3 numbers from June 2 drawing

Midday: 3-3-8, FB: 5

Evening: 6-9-5, FB: 7

Check Cash 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

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Winning Cash 4 numbers from June 2 drawing

Midday: 6-0-4-9, FB: 5

Evening: 2-8-1-0, FB: 7

Check Cash 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash Pop numbers from June 2 drawing

Midday: 08

Evening: 03

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Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Story continues below gallery.

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

Winnings of $599 or less can be claimed at any authorized Mississippi Lottery retailer.

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Prizes between $600 and $99,999, may be claimed at the Mississippi Lottery Headquarters or by mail. Mississippi Lottery Winner Claim form, proper identification (ID) and the original ticket must be provided for all claims of $600 or more. If mailing, send required documentation to:

Mississippi Lottery Corporation

P.O. Box 321462

Flowood, MS

39232

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If your prize is $100,000 or more, the claim must be made in person at the Mississippi Lottery headquarters. Please bring identification, such as a government-issued photo ID and a Social Security card to verify your identity. Winners of large prizes may also have the option of setting up electronic funds transfer (EFT) for direct deposits into a bank account.

Mississippi Lottery Headquarters

1080 River Oaks Drive, Bldg. B-100

Flowood, MS

39232

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Mississippi Lottery prizes must be claimed within 180 days of the drawing date. For detailed instructions and necessary forms, please visit the Mississippi Lottery claim page.

When are the Mississippi Lottery drawings held?

  • Cash 3: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
  • Cash 4: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
  • Match 5: Daily at 9:30 p.m. CT.
  • Cash Pop: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Mississippi editor. You can send feedback using this form.



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Jackson mayor claims victory after water authority ruling. What he said

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Jackson mayor claims victory after water authority ruling. What he said


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  • A federal judge issued a split ruling on a new state law creating the Metro Jackson Water Authority.
  • The judge blocked the new authority from taking substantive actions while Jackson’s water system is under federal oversight.
  • Jackson Mayor John Horhn claimed the ruling as a victory, validating the city’s concerns about a state takeover.
  • The judge did not strike down the law itself, leaving the question of future control of the water system unresolved.

Jackson Mayor John Horhn claimed victory in the city’s legal fight against Mississippi’s new Metro Jackson Water Authority, arguing a federal judge’s latest ruling validates Jackson’s concerns about state lawmakers trying to influence the future of the city’s water system.

During a press conference at City Hall Tuesday, June 2, Horhn pointed to U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate’s decision to block the authority from naming a president, entering lease agreements or taking other substantive actions while Jackson’s water and sewer systems remain under federal oversight.

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“What we’re thankful of is that the judge seems to agree with us,” Horhn said. “House Bill 1677 appeared to try to subvert the authority of the federal court.”

The comments come one day after Wingate issued a split ruling on the controversial law. While the judge declined to block House Bill 1677 outright, he also barred the Metro Jackson Water Authority from taking operational action beyond seating board members while the federal court continues overseeing Jackson’s water and sewer systems.

But Wingate’s ruling did not strike down House Bill 1677. It was more of a split ruling.

The judge agreed with arguments made by the state, Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality and JXN Water that the law itself does not automatically transfer control of Jackson’s water and sewer systems because any future takeover remains subject to federal court approval.

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That leaves open a question: If the law remains on the books, could the Metro Jackson Water Authority simply remain in place until federal oversight ends and then assume control of the systems?

Horhn was asked that question directly Tuesday.

In response, Horhn focused on portions of the ruling that prevent the authority from naming a president who would serve as a deputy to JXN Water leader and Interim Third-Party Manager Ted Henifin. Horhn also pointed to Wingate blocking movement on any lease agreements until the court decides how the eventual transition away from federal oversight should occur.

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“Two major points of the judge’s ruling are that he enjoined the state and the authority if it does start taking action from being able to name a president who would become the second in command of JXN Water,” Horhn said. “The other thing is that he enjoined any action on a lease being entered into until such time as he has had a chance to deliberate and decide what the future path ought to be.”

Horhn’s answer suggested he believes the ruling leaves room for other options besides simply allowing House Bill 1677 to take effect once federal oversight ends.

“What the judge has said to us for a number of months is that he wants to see a transition plan,” Horhn said.

The mayor said city officials have already begun discussions with JXN Water about what that transition plan could look like.

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“We have begun discussions with JXN Water to have meaningful conversations with them about putting such a transition plan forward,” Horhn said. “At this point, the actions of the city are focused on working with Jackson Water to try to come up with a transition plan that might be approved by the judge.”

Under existing court orders, JXN Water is expected to develop a formal transition plan that must ultimately be approved by Wingate.

When asked whether the city could pursue its own water authority rather than the state-created Metro Jackson Water Authority, Horhn pointed to existing Mississippi law allowing municipalities to create utility districts.

“For a number of years, there has been state statutory authority for municipalities to establish municipal utility districts,” Horhn said. “We have made that presentation before the judge, and as I understand it, he’s taking it under advisory.”

Horhn did not elaborate on whether the city is actively pursuing that option, but the comments suggest Jackson may continue advocating for alternatives to House Bill 1677 as discussions about a post-receivership transition continue.

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Additionally, Horhn reiterated his long-standing position that Jackson should maintain majority control over any future governing body overseeing the city’s water and wastewater systems.

“We don’t mind participation and involvement by the state of Mississippi,” Horhn said. “But any future governance of the City of Jackson’s water and wastewater system must have the City of Jackson having the majority of control.”

Horhn said Jackson’s position has never been that the state should be excluded entirely.

“What I have said is that we don’t mind participation and involvement by the state of Mississippi,” Horhn said. “But any future governance of the City of Jackson’s water and wastewater system must have the City of Jackson having the majority of control on any future boards or authorities that would be created.”

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Horhn said Jackson opposed House Bill 1677 because it would have allowed state and suburban appointees to outnumber city representatives on the authority’s governing board.

“We don’t mind if you want to have some involvement, but not control,” Horhn said.

The mayor also argued the legislation ignored concerns repeatedly raised by Jackson officials during the legislative process.

“House Bill 1677 was a classic example of the state not listening to the local interests of the City of Jackson,” Horhn said.

Overall, Wingate’s 22-page order on Monday, June 1, was something of a split decision. Jackson persuaded Wingate to freeze many of the authority’s powers, but the state successfully defended the law itself from being blocked outright. The larger question of who will ultimately control Jackson’s water system remains unresolved. For now, Wingate remains in the driver’s seat.

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“The parties should all accept that this state statute cannot force this court’s hand, nor dictate the calendar of this litigation,” Wingate wrote.

Charlie Drape, the Jackson beat reporter, has covered the Jackson water crisis from its collapse in 2022 through the system’s ongoing recovery, including independent testing and other accountability reporting. You can contact him at cdrape@gannett.com.



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How SCOTUS Callais Ruling Erased a Mississippi Voting Rights Victory

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How SCOTUS Callais Ruling Erased a Mississippi Voting Rights Victory


In 2022, Dyamone White, then in her late 20s, filed a lawsuit in federal court arguing that Black voters like her didn’t have a fair chance to elect justices to the Mississippi Supreme Court.

Three years later, she won a significant victory. A federal judge ruled that Mississippi Supreme Court election districts violated the Voting Rights Act and that Black candidates who wanted to run for the state’s highest court were unlikely to succeed. U.S. District Court Judge Sharion Aycock instructed lawmakers to draw a new map to give Black voters more power, with court-ordered special elections to follow, likely this fall.

“WE WON,” White wrote in a social media post that day in August 2025. “This isn’t just a personal victory — it’s a win for every Mississippian who has waited too long for fair representation. I became a plaintiff because I refused to accept that our state’s highest court could exclude the very people it serves. Today, that changes.”

But that change still hasn’t happened — and a recent seismic ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court means it may never happen.

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In late April, the conservative majority of the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in Louisiana v. Callais that dramatically weakened the Voting Rights Act, making it much harder for racial minorities to win voting discrimination lawsuits.

The decision further intensified a mid-decade redistricting war that’s been spreading across the country ahead of the congressional elections in the fall. But the decision affects politics beyond the federal level. The now-upended court battle about Mississippi’s judicial elections will serve as an early test of whether voting rights plaintiffs can still mount a convincing case in some circumstances.

Earlier this month, a federal appeals court vacated Aycock’s ruling from last year after the plaintiffs and defendants agreed that the Callais decision had dramatically changed the legal landscape.

That removed the state’s obligation to draw a new court map. It also eliminated the possibility that the state would hold special elections for its Supreme Court seats this fall, ending Black voters’ hope that 2026 may yield fairer representation at the top of the state’s judiciary. The case will now head back to Aycock’s court for new arguments under the higher standard created by the Callais decision.

The plaintiffs still see a path forward to win new maps. Attorneys with the American Civil Liberties Union and the Southern Poverty Law Center argue on behalf of White and her fellow plaintiffs that they can still prevail under that new standard.

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Looking to the court battles ahead, White is also looking back. She is from the tiny town of Edwards, a rural community near the state’s capital city region, and she recites its history of Black resistance to oppression, from the Civil War to the Civil Rights movement and beyond.

“It’s an area that is resilient,” White said. “The people I grew up around, they were all fighters.”

Dyamone White with Reuben Anderson, the first Black justice on the Mississippi Supreme Court, in 2024.

The Voting Rights Act, passed in 1965, was a key tool in dismantling the Jim Crow regime of White supremacy that blocked Black residents from ballot box access in Mississippi and across the South.

Among other provisions, the law prohibited states from diluting the voting power of racial minorities and required that those voters have an opportunity to elect candidates of their choosing.

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So, with Callais decided, what’s changed?

When plaintiffs filed suit over the Mississippi Supreme Court voting districts in 2022, they had to show a violation of the law only by pointing to discriminatory effects of the voting districts in use, regardless of what the original architects of those districts may have intended.

Those effects? Black people make up about 38% of Mississippi’s population, but the state has just one Black justice currently sitting on its nine-member Supreme Court. Only four Black justices have ever been on the court, all serving since 1985 and never more than one at a time. All four first reached the court through a gubernatorial appointment to fill a vacancy.

That has meant very little Black representation on a body that interprets state laws and the state constitution, hears appeals in criminal and civil cases and has some control over the operations of lower courts.

With no need to delve into the intention of the legislators who created the current districts in the late 1980s, Aycock, a George W. Bush appointee, ruled that the Mississippi Supreme Court districts as drawn have the effect of diluting Black voting power, violating the Voting Rights Act.

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U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito’s majority opinion in the Callais case, however, sets a higher standard. A Voting Rights Act violation may now be found “only when circumstances give rise to a strong inference that intentional discrimination occurred.”

Legal experts have said that proving intentional discrimination is challenging — made even more difficult by the Alito opinion’s endorsement of partisan gerrymandering as a legitimate purpose of redistricting. The conservative justice wrote that states can now defend themselves against race dilution claims by arguing that Black districts are being eliminated not because of racist motivations but partisan ones since Black voters have typically supported Democratic candidates.

States like Louisiana and Tennessee have moved to quickly eliminate Black-majority Congressional districts. They will likely defend their new maps as partisan gerrymanders, not racially motivated ones.

“It’s going to be just lightning-strike rare for a Voting Rights Act claim to work where partisanship is permitted,” said Justin Levitt, a former Department of Justice official and election law expert who teaches at Loyola Marymount University Law School.

However, Mississippi Supreme Court elections are nonpartisan, and that may make a meaningful difference in the current litigation, said Amir Badat, a civil rights lawyer who has argued a number of voting rights claims in the state.

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Badat said that even under Callais, lawmakers may not be able to hide behind partisan intent to shield themselves from judicial scrutiny.

“In this kind of narrow circumstance, you still have viable Section 2 claims,” said Badat, referencing the section of the Voting Rights Act that bans discriminatory election practices.

Levitt agrees that voting rights cases in nonpartisan elections may still be possible to win under Callais, though he added that the overall impact of the decision likely makes even those cases quite difficult.

While the legal standard may have changed, White, the lawsuit’s lead plaintiff, says one thing has not: The reality faced by Black voters who want to see a fair state Supreme Court map.

“We laid out the facts of representation in the state. You can’t deny that, “ White said. “We can go back to court again, and the facts remain the same. Representation is not equal.”

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This article was produced in collaboration with Bolts, a nonprofit publication that covers criminal justice and voting rights in local governments; sign up for their newsletter.



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