Mississippi is one of only a few states that had a decline in population based on the 2020 U.S. Census, and a majority of the population change occurred in the state’s rural areas. - During a hearing last night at the State Capitol, Nsombi Lambright with the NAACP of Jackson told lawmakers her concern about how they will address population declines in majority Black districts.
“And that’s why it’s really up to organizations like ours to work hand in hand with lawmakers through this entire process,” says Lambright. “To make sure that we keep some districts the same and expand. We don’t want to go backward.”
During last November’s general election, thousands of voters waited in long lines to vote. Madison County Election Commissioner Carol Mann says some voters were moved to a prescient with just three ballot boxes, and she wants lawmakers to distribute populations evenly.
Mann says “We want the Madison County district 1 map, the precinct map, restored to its former boundaries. So that thousands of voters will not have to wait for hours to exercise their right to vote.”
Representative Charles Beckett (R) of Bruce Chairs of the Joint Legislative Redistricting Committee. He says there are so many districts with large population changes, that most will need to be redrawn.
Rep. Beckett says “I hear people tell me ‘well my district is still within deviation so it’s not gonna be a problem.’ Well, that’s not necessarily true because what if your neighbor lost 10%, and so we’re gonna have to change your district, and the next one, and the next one. It’s just a domino effect.”
Census data will not be confirmed until the end of September, giving lawmakers just three months to finalize redistricting plans before the start of the 2022 legislative session.
