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Mississippi Reelects All U.S. House, Senate Incumbents

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Mississippi Reelects All U.S. House, Senate Incumbents


JACKSON, Miss.—Incumbent U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, a Mississippi Republican who supports legislation that could ban abortion from the moment of conception, easily won reelection on Tuesday night and will serve another six-year term representing Mississippi in Congress. He defeated Democratic candidate Ty Pinkins.

Wicker told the Mississippi Free Press he sought reelection to complete some unfinished business in Mississippi including assisting small businesses, helping veterans, strengthening the military, and completing flood-control projects in Jackson, Miss., and the Delta.

“Some tax provisions that encourage job creation are about to expire. We need to renew those and make sure we take the regulatory burden off small businesses owners. They’re the ones who created the jobs in America,” he told the Mississippi Free Press on Tuesday.

Pinkins told the Mississippi Free Press that he ran for U.S. Senate, in part, because rich farm owners in the Delta had brought in white South African immigrants to do work and paid them more during training than they paid the Black farmers who had been working on the farms for years.

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Pinkins’ campaign also focused on supporting women’s reproductive rights, including the right to abortion.

Wicker has fought to restrict abortion rights multiple times since he started his time in the U.S. Senate in 2007. He also voted against federal protections for same-sex couples. Pinkins ran in support of codifying protections offered under Roe v. Wade before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned it.

“Thank you for your unwavering support, your votes, and for giving me the privilege of representing your hopes and your aspirations,” Pinkins wrote in a tweet on Wednesday.

With 98% of the vote counted as of Wednesday at 10:20 a.m., Wicker secured 63% of the vote, with 668,802 Mississippians choosing him for reelection; Pinkins got 37% of the vote with 393,330 Mississippians selecting him on their ballots.

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., celebrates his victory and other Republicans across the country at a campaign watch party on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. Photo by Heather Harrison

Mississippi’s four incumbents in the House of Representatives also all won reelection. Republican U.S. House Rep. Trent Kelly won 69.9% of the vote while Democrat Dianne Dodson Black won 30.1% in Mississippi’s 1st Congressional District.

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Democratic U.S. House Rep. Bennie Thompson secured 61.7% of the vote over Republican candidate Ron Eller’s 38.3% in Mississippi’s 2nd Congressional District. Thompson is the only Democrat in Mississippi’s congressional delegation. He told the press at his watch party in Bolton, Miss., that some of his top priorities are helping Mississippi’s health care system, building hospitals in rural areas, upgrading the highway system and sponsoring a farm bill to support the agricultural industry.

“We have to have a farm bill that benefits everyone, not just the rich, but everyone. And so I hope to go back and work on a farm bill that’s balanced on who supports it but also who the beneficiaries are,” he said on Tuesday night.

Republican U.S. Rep. Michael Guest ran unopposed in Mississippi’s 3rd Congressional District and won. 

“I’m honored to be re-elected to serve as your congressman and to represent our conservative values in our nation’s capital,” Guest tweeted on Tuesday evening.

In Mississippi’s 4th Congressional District, Republican U.S. House Rep. Mike Ezell won 74.6% of the vote and just 25.4% of people voted for Democrat Craig Raybon, who said in October that he was withdrawing from the race.

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“I’ll continue to be an open book. Come to Washington, we’ll take care of you. Anything I can do for my office as far as your congressman, I’ll be glad to help,” Ezell told WLOX on Tuesday night.





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Vote: Who is the Mississippi High School Football Quarterback of the Year?

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January 7, 2026

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Vote: Who is the Mississippi High School Football Quarterback of the Year?


Today, we take a look at some of the best signal callers in the state of Mississippi from the 2025 season.

This season was one to remember in the state of Mississippi, and part of that is due to the terrific play from the quarterback position. Our nominees include a mixture of gunslingers and dual-threat quarterbacks who put on a show every single week, and because of that each nominee is worthy of a vote.

However, we will leave that up to you, the fan, to decide who is the High School on SI Mississippi high school quarterback of the year for 2025.

Voting will close on January 31 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

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Here are the nominations:

Chancelor comes in as our first nominee as he led the Magnolia State in passing yards this season. He completed 65 percent of his passes for 3,419 yards and 28 touchdowns. Chancelor also added two more scores on the ground.

This season, Mayes completed nearly 67 percent of his passes for 2,934 yards and 40 touchdowns with just seven interceptions. He also showed that he was one of the top dual-threat quarterbacks in the state this season. He rushed for 1,195 yards and 17 touchdowns on 122 carries.

Craft led the Oilers to an appearance to the Class 2A state championship after a terrific season as the signal-caller. He completed nearly 72 percent of his passes for 2,912 yards and 35 touchdowns with eight interceptions. Like Mayes, Craft was one of the top dual-threat quarterbacks in the state this season. He rushed for 1,027 yards and 17 touchdowns on 117 carries.

Stockett completed nearly 66 percent of his passes this season for 2,905 yards and 23 touchdowns with nine interceptions. He also rushed for one touchdown.

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Wilcox was another outstanding quarterback from the MAIS this season. He completed 58 percent of his passes for 2,868 yards and 34 touchdowns with nine interceptions. He also rushed for 272 yards and eight touchdowns on 72 carries

Stringer completed just shy of 61 percent of his passes this season for 2,783 yards and 37 touchdowns to seven interceptions. He added 144 yards on the ground with two touchdowns.

As the leader on the offense, and one of the leaders on the entire team, Nettles was outstanding all season long as he helped led the Admirals to the Class 7A state championship. He finished 2025 with a 66 percent completion percentage and 2,750 yards with 23 touchdowns. He added two more scores on the ground.

This season, Shettles completed nearly 62 percent of his passes for 2,730 yards and 28 touchdowns with only one interception. He also rushed for 325 yards and nine touchdowns on 67 carries.

Hall took the momentum he had from his sophomore season and carried it over to this season. He completed 64 percent of his passes for 2,709 yards and 34 touchdowns with just four interceptions. He added 189 more yards on the ground with one touchdown.

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Trivillion helped led the Pirates to 11 wins this season which is a school record thanks in part to his play from the quarterback position. He completed nearly 53 percent of his passes for 2,570 yards and 34 touchdowns with 10 interceptions. Trivillion also rushed for 1,120 yards and 15 touchdowns on 105 carries this season.

This season, Ducksworth completed 67 percent of his passes for 2,581 yards with 27 touchdowns to only five interceptions.

Davis was one of the top dual-threat quarterbacks in the state this season. He completed nearly 64 percent of his passes for 2,547 yards with 27 touchdowns and nine interceptions. On the ground, he rushed for 650 yards and seven touchdowns on 96 carries.

Edwards showed that he was one of the most efficient quarterbacks in the state this season with a 73 percent completion percentage. On top of completing nearly three-fourths of his passes, he passed for 2,534 yards with 20 touchdowns and just one interceptions. He also added 170 yards on the ground with three touchdowns.

Johnson completed over 50 percent of his passes for 2,510 yards with 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He also rushed for 488 yards and eight touchdowns on 104 carries.

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Wade is our final quarterback of the year nominee for the 2025 season in the state of Mississippi. He completed 60 percent of his passes for 2,402 yards and 22 touchdowns with three interceptions. Wade also rushed for 407 yards and 12 touchdowns on 107 carries.

Editor’s note: Our corresponding poll is intended to be fun, and we do not set limits on how many times a fan can vote during the competition. This poll is specifically for fans to vote on the players that have been nominated and in no way discredits any other player that may not be mentioned in our poll.



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Miami Hurricanes have two Mississippi connections – and one is quite large

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January 7, 2026

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Miami Hurricanes have two Mississippi connections – and one is quite large


The Miami Hurricanes, who play the Ole Miss Rebels in Thursday’s Fiesta Bowl, have two Mississippi connections. One is left tackle Markel Bell, a former standout at Holmes Community College. The other is offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson, who previously worked at Millsaps College and Southern Miss.



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Jackson City Council presses Judge Wingate on JXN Water ahead of rate ruling

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January 6, 2026

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Jackson City Council presses Judge Wingate on JXN Water ahead of rate ruling


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The Jackson City Council approved a resolution Tuesday morning urging U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate to “consider” taking a series of actions related to JXN Water operations, billing practices and financial oversight.

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The vote occurred one day before Wingate is set to rule on whether Jackson residents will receive a second water rate increase, something that Interim Third Party Water Manager and leader of JXN Water Ted Henifin has been pushing for nearly a year now.

While the vote carries no legal force — only Wingate can issue binding orders governing JXN Water — it formally lays out the council’s priorities and frustrations as the seemingly never-ending dispute between the city and JXN Water intensifies.

The council voted 4–1 to approve the resolution. Ward 1 Councilman Ashby Foote voted against it, while Ward 2 Councilwoman Tina Clay and Ward 3 Councilman Kenneth Stokes were not in attendance.

The resolution urges Wingate to:

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  • Extend the court’s billing amnesty order through April 30, 2026.
  • Require walk-in, in-person customer service without appointments, Monday through Saturday.
    • JXN Water currently handles most customer service issues through its call center.
  • Direct JXN Water and the city to assign staff to address billing system problems.
  • Order an affordability study, rather than a rate study, to guide future decisions.
  • Compel JXN Water to immediately remit sanitation fees owed to the city and to do so on a quarterly basis going forward.
    • City officials say JXN Water is withholding roughly $14 million in sanitation fees that are typically transferred monthly to help pay the city’s long-term residential garbage collection contract with Richard’s Disposal Inc. The utility has held the funds since spring 2025.
  • Credit the city for bond debt and water loss charges the council says should be the responsibility of JXN Water.
  • Prohibit the court-appointed monitor from publicly commenting on the city’s efforts to secure alternative funding sources.
  • Ensure equitable billing for Byram and other non-Jackson users.
    • Those areas receive water from Jackson, but any rate increase would require approval from the Mississippi Public Service Commission, which has not occurred.
  • Remove JXN Water employees from the city payroll.
  • Align JXN Water’s fiscal year with the city’s Oct. 1–Sept. 30 budget cycle.

One amendment was made to the resolution to soften its language. According to Ward 7 Councilman Kevin Parkinson, the title was changed from urging Wingate “to take certain actions” related to JXN Water instead to urging him “to consider” those actions.

Parkinson said the council made the change “out of deference to the judge.”

“We believe in the substance of the issue, but we don’t think it’s our place to tell a federal judge anything,” Parkinson said. “We ask the judge to please consider the items.”

JXN Water’s response

In a Tuesday afternoon statement to the Clarion Ledger, JXN Water Spokesperson Aisha Carson said the utility “is aware of the resolution introduced by the City of Jackson and believes it is important to provide context as the matter proceeds in court.”

“For years, the City of Jackson and members of the City Council had the opportunity to responsibly manage and invest in the water system and failed to do so. JXN Water exists because of that failure,” the statement reads. “Now, after the system is working well — delivering water and keeping raw sewage off the streets — and after the system was removed from the City’s control by the federal courts, the Council is attempting to direct the very entity tasked with fixing what they did not.

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“In addition, the unfounded and erroneous claims made about JXN Water’s billing system undermine public trust and weaken collection efforts without acknowledging the conditions we inherited or the progress already made. While Council members continue to advocate on behalf of their constituents, JXN Water must apply its policies consistently to sustain the system for all customers. The full record and legal arguments will be addressed in court.”

The looming decision on water rates

It’s unclear whether Wingate will take up any of the council’s requests or keep the hearing focused on the proposed water rate increase. But anyone who has spent time in Wingate’s courtroom knows the discussion can veer wherever the judge sees fit. As Henifin put it last week, “there is no predicting what will come up during the hearing.”

The proposed water rate increase would raise the average residential water bill from about $76 to $85 per month — roughly a 12% increase — to help cover operating costs and debt service. Henifin has argued the increase is necessary to stabilize the system financially.

Henifin wanted the increase rate to take affect in Dec. 15, 2025, but Wingate temporarily blocked the rate increase in November.

In a Dec. 22 filing, City Attorney Drew Martin argued that a second increase would unfairly burden paying customers, noting that tens of millions of dollars remain uncollected each year.

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“The City simply asks that the Court order JXN Water to do what the City must do and what every citizen and ratepayer must do: live within its means,” Martin wrote.

Along with the council, Jackson Mayor John Horhn is opposed to the rate hike. He previously told the Clarion Ledger that JXN Water should first improve collections and cut costs. Roughly 20-30% of customers remain delinquent, according to city estimates.

Horhn could not be reached for further comment regarding the council’s resolution. Jackson spokesperson Nic Lott did not respond to a request for comment.

The council’s action also follows last week’s vote to temporarily cover more than $2 million in trash-collection bills from the city’s general fund after JXN Water withheld sanitation fees residents already paid on their water bills. Henifin has said the utility is withholding the money because the city owes millions in unpaid water bills, largely tied to leaks at the Jackson Zoo.

Wingate previously pressed Henifin on his legal authority to withhold those funds. Henifin acknowledged he had none but said the money would be released once the city settles its debt.

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Why Foote voted no

Foote was the lone vote against the resolution. While he has voiced some criticism of JXN Water in the past, Foote has generally declined to support council resolutions aimed at the federally managed utility.

In October, when the council approved another resolution stating that Jackson’s water and sewer systems should be returned to the city and out of JXN Water’s hands, Foote was also the lone vote against.

He explained his reasoning after the meeting.

“I thought the City was better off not making a big news headline with a Resolution confronting a Federal Judge about the operations of JXN Water during the opening week of the Legislative Session, when our focus needs to be the many issues the City has with things we control such as crime, blight, squatters and the ongoing exodus of citizens out of Jackson,” Foote said.

He used one of his familiar lines that “the main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.”

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“Squabbling publicly with JXN Water distracts from the Mayor’s narrative of Jackson Rising,” Foote said.

Charlie Drape is the Jackson beat reporter. Contact him at cdrape@gannett.com.



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