Mississippi is a state that has seen its fair share of politics over the years. It’s home to two major political parties, which have been vying for power since the state seceded in 1861. Currently, Republicans hold a majority with 27 out of 32 legislative seats. However, Democrats still hold a large share of power locally and statewide. Despite being dominated by one party, Mississippi has become an increasingly diverse state politically. Its citizens have elected governors from both parties since the 1990s and they have elected mayors from all walks of life as well. Mississippi State is no exception to this trend – it has had mayors representing various backgrounds and ideologies throughout its history. The city often sees spirited debates about issues like taxes, public safety, education, and economic development, just to name a few. Political engagement in Mississippi State is thus incredibly important for helping shape the future of the city's communities.
The political climate in Mississippi State, MS is somewhat liberal.
Oktibbeha County, MS is leaning liberal. In Oktibbeha County, MS 52.1% of the people voted Democrat in the last presidential election, 45.6% voted for the Republican Party, and the remaining 2.3% voted Independent.
In the last Presidential election, Oktibbeha county remained moderately Democratic, 52.1% to 45.6%.
Oktibbeha county voted Democratic in the four most recent Presidential elections, after 2000 and 2004 went Republican.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index
Mississippi State, MS is somewhat liberal.
Oktibbeha County, Mississippi is leaning liberal.
Starkville Metro Area is leaning liberal.
Mississippi is moderately conservative.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index is based on recent voting in national elections, federal campaign contributions by local residents, and consumer personality profiles.
VoteWord™
Displaying 20 years of Presidential voting, visualized in one word.
Mississippi State, Mississippi: R R d d d d
How It Works:
Here at BestPlaces, we were looking at the voting patterns since the 2000 election and realized that we could express the results of each election as one letter. R if the Republican Party candidate won, D if the Democratic Party candidate won and I if the Independent Party candidate won. The six elections (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020) would be expressed as six-letter word (R R D R R).
Then we went a little further and added the dimension of magnitude. If the difference of victory was greater than 10 percent, the letter is upper case, and lower case if the difference was less than 10 percent. This allows us to see interesting voting patterns at just a glance.
Here's the VoteWord for Iowa d r d d r. In the last six elections the state has been closely contested, voting narrowly for the Republican Party candidate in 2016 and 2020 after voting for the Democratic Party in 2008 and 2012. Virginia (r r d d d D) has voted for the Democratic Party in the last three elections.
Individual Campaign Contributions in Mississippi State, MS
In the last 4 years (2018-2021), there were 4,893 contributions totaling $493,656 to the Democratic Party and liberal campaigns, averaging $101 per contribution.
In the last 4 years, there were 1,677 contributions totaling $467,487 to the Republican Party and conservative campaigns, averaging $279 per contribution.
(source: Federal Election Commission)