Jackson Jambalaya

"If you ignore the fact that Tate did worse than every other GOP candidate in the last 12 years, you'll see that he's actually very popular." Come on, let's not insult everyone's intelligence here.

The thing is, if you accept the obvious truth that people DON'T like Tate very much, it only makes it all the more clear that the MS Dems are in bad shape. Tate did worse than a generic GOP candidate would have done, based on the historical trend (sorry Andy), and yet he still beat Hood easily.

I don't think any sane Democrat can honestly say "we just need to stay the course" after this year's results. This will be the high-water mark of their current strategy. It doesn't get any easier. Time for a hard look in the mirror.

Regardless, there isn't anyone who will beat Dilbert once its "his turn". Dems need to turn off the lights for the next 16 yrs.

Democrats, both nationally and especially in Mississippi, ought to turn toward libertarianism, and not toward socialism, as an alternative to the policies of the current GOP (which has turned away from libertarianism and toward nationalism and protectionism).

But I am not going to hold my breath waiting on this to occur.

The national Democratic Party made it impossible for Hood to win on Tuesday.

National Democrats are lauding their win in the KY(state not jelly) Gov race while refusing to see the obvious that the guy was hated by everyone. The MS election proves that the KY guy was hated because a lot of Republicans state wide loathe Tate Reeves, but still held their nose and voted for him. That KY incumbent must really be horrible.

Speaking of Digburt, and assuming Fitch (the blonde in red) to be at least HIS age or older, what about HER turn? Some day people will realize the photos she uses are fifteen years old.

@10:55. While Dilbert would be dang near impossible to beat and I wish him nothing but the best of health, you are betting on a man running for gov at the age of 80. That's a tough path. I would expect one of the others to step up.

And is on course to get Trump re-elected.

"And the false narrative that Tate Reeves could not unite Republicans in a race against a popular, populist Democratic opponent was just that–false."

If this quote means that Republicans agreed with Reeves' policy platform, I don't believe the election can be fairly read that way. Reeves did not set forth a policy platform.

What Reeves did is the same as what the Republicans did in Kentucky - they distracted from an unpopular candidate by focusing on tribalism. The pitch was, "You're not like them. You're like us. So vote for us." Not enough Kentucky voters fell for it. Mississippi voters did.

The lesson from the numbers - which Taggart has a good handle on - is that Mississippi voters are heavily predisposed to vote Republican. You just have to give them the slimmest of reasons to do so.

The national Democratic Party made it impossible for Hood to win on Tuesday.

They're not finished.

This is simply not a state that the Democrats can win. Democrats typically do well in college educated households with above median income. We simply are not that. It’s like expecting New York or California to vote Republican ain’t gonna happen. Democrats are fine nationally, they won the popular vote easily and Trump has turned more people away from that party than they could ever win with a new policy. In all honesty they probably don’t mind Mississippi voting Republican. Its going to be hard for the state to blame all their problems on the Democrats now, but I’m sure the Republicans will still try to say we are last in everything because of AOC and socialism.

Mississippi is simply a one party state. No doubt. It has always divided mostly on racial lines no matter who the candidate might be. It was once impossible for a Republican to get anywhere, now it's the same for Democrats.What's the common tread?

If we could just rid of Bennie Thompson. What a leach.

Hood got 6-7% of the republican votes. That’s a huge number of people that won’t vote for him in 2023 unless he’s a dynamic governor.

Should college students write goodbye notes to Tate when they graduate from Mississippi universities and leave Mississippi for those "liberal big cities" that offer better pay, benefits, and quality of life?

We'll just sit around, watch Mississippi continue to decline, and worry about who wins the annual Egg Bowl. Why do I keep hearing Randy Newman's song, "Rednecks", playing in the background?

To suggest that polling at 52% means Tate Reeves "won handily" gives new meaning to that phrase, Mr. Taggart. Also, your narrative assumes that there has been no growth in the voting population since 1999. I suppose we'll have to wait until next year's Census is completed to see whether they assumption holds any water. Moreover, for a sitting Lieutenant Governor to draw an opponent and a runoff and still only finish with 52% of the vote should send shivers down the spine of Mr. Reeves. If he can't make himself more popular over the next four years, he may not be able to get his "guaranteed" second term.

3:27 is right.

OM, MSU, and USM are all fantastic economic development drivers ... for Nashville, Atlanta, Houston, etc. Tennessee, Georgia, and Texas should all be writing checks to the MSGOP for ensuring a steady pipeline of well-educated, motivated workers for their growing cities.

Dems need to turn off the lights for the next 16 yrs.

That would be wonderful......national Dems could also hit the off switch.

3:27 PM Lots of old folks are leaving for those big liberal cities too to be near healthcare, kids, grandkids, etc.

Approximately 1 million registered voters did not vote last Tuesday. If the black vote ever turned out, this would be a blue state. Instead, we get a Trump and Tater, both criminals.

@8:36 - please put down the meth pipe.

3:27 p.m. says, "Should college students write goodbye notes to Tate when they graduate from Mississippi universities and leave Mississippi for those "liberal big cities" that offer better pay, benefits, and quality of life?"

I agree that Mississippi's college students are leaving but the ones I know are going to Texas and Nashville. I personally don't even know anyone heading to Atlanta.

In 20-30 years, none of this matters. Dems will have handily taken over the state by attrition. Young, mobile white college students leaving, old white guard dying off with all their smart children and grandchildren having left the state, and minority birth rates outpacing all others while those that can leave have left. Enjoy keeping “Mississippi Values” for the next couple decades or so, because soon enough the entire state will turn in to Jackson.

More than a few of our young people " get the message" when they try to vote absentee ballots while in an out of State college. It's mission impossible...deliberately.

It's reinforced when they see how decision making in government happens elsewhere. And, when they listen to the discussions of issues.

The message is again reinforced when they see that character and intelligence matter more than skin color.

It's reinforced again when they go to church and hear more about the Sermon on the Mount and the New Testament rather than the Old Testament.

We should be talking to the children who won't come back even though there was much they loved and still miss.

When Mississippi turns into Jackson, the Democrats will finally be in charge. If you think Jackson is well run and prospering under the Democrats, and that the Democrats would do a better job of governing the state, I don’t even know what to say. The Republicans have not done a great job in running the state, but the Democrats have an even worse track record. Exactly what city in Mississippi run by Democrats is showing that they can run a government well? And it isn’t Democratic policies in Houston, Nashville , etc,, that are attracting Mississippi young folks. Texas is a Republican governed state. If the Democrats who govern Houston and Austin had control of the state, it is likely that Texas would not be booming. Those cities are prospering in spite of the local Democratic control. We certainly need better leadership, but unfortunately the Democrats cannot and will not offer it, so we are stuck with the lesser of the two evils.