Mississippi 2024 ballot measures
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Zero statewide ballot measures were certified to appear on the ballot in Mississippi on November 5, 2024.
Potential measures
For 2024, measures that were certified for the ballot are available here, and measures that failed to make the ballot are available here.
Getting measures on the ballot
On May 14, 2021, the Mississippi Supreme Court overturned Initiative 65, the 2020 medical marijuana initiative. The ruling stated that the initiative petition did not comply with the signature distribution requirements in the Mississippi Constitution and that it is impossible for any petition to meet the requirements and has been impossible since congressional reapportionment in 2001.
The six justices wrote, "... Whether with intent, by oversight, or for some other reason, the drafters of [the constitutional signature distribution requirement] wrote a ballot initiative process that cannot work in a world where Mississippi has fewer than five representatives in Congress. To work in today’s reality, it will need amending—something that lies beyond the power of the Supreme Court."[1]
The 1992 constitutional amendment that granted the power of citizen initiative in Mississippi required signatures to be collected evenly from all five congressional districts that existed at the time. It mandated no more than one-fifth of the required signatures could be collected from any single congressional district. During 2001 redistricting after the 2000 census, however, the number of congressional districts in the state was reduced to four.
Sponsors of some initiatives targeting the 2022 ballot in Mississippi filed a lawsuit challenging the Supreme Court's ruling.[2]
Click here for more information on the lawsuit and the ruling.
State profile
| Demographic data for Mississippi | ||
|---|---|---|
| Mississippi | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 2,989,390 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 46,923 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 59.2% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 37.4% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 1% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.4% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 1.2% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 2.9% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 82.3% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 20.7% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $39,665 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 27% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Mississippi. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
Mississippi voted Republican in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, two are located in Mississippi, accounting for 0.97 percent of the total pivot counties.[3]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Mississippi had two Retained Pivot Counties, 1.10 of all Retained Pivot Counties.
More Mississippi coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Mississippi
- United States congressional delegations from Mississippi
- Public policy in Mississippi
- Endorsers in Mississippi
- Mississippi fact checks
- More...
See also
- 2024 ballot measures
- List of Mississippi ballot measures
- Laws governing ballot measures in Mississippi
- Campaign finance requirements for Mississippi ballot measures
External links
- ↑ Mississippi Supreme Court, "IN RE INITIATIVE MEASURE NO. 65: MAYOR MARY HAWKINS BUTLER v MICHAEL WATSON, IN HIS OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI," accessed May 14, 2021
- ↑ WMC Action News, "Challenge filed to Mississippi Supreme Court’s ruling on Initiative 65," accessed June 3, 2021
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.