2003 Mississippi gubernatorial election

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Gilbert Fountain, perennial candidate
• Elder McClendon
• Ronnie Musgrove, incumbent Governor of Mississippi
• Katie Perrone
• Catherine Starr, activist

Campaign

Musgrove was elected governor in 1999 after a very close election against Michael Parker. As neither candidate had obtained a majority in the election, Musgrove was chosen as governor by the Democratic controlled Mississippi House of Representatives.

As governor, Musgrove had difficulties with the state's legislators. He vetoed the whole budget one year but was overridden by the legislature. However, Musgrove campaigned on having secured the largest pay raise for teachers in the state's history.

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

• Haley Barbour, Chairman of Republican National Committee, political consultant, Republican nominee for the United States Senate in 1982
• Mitch Tyner, attorney

Campaign

Barbour, a former advisor in the White House during the presidency of Ronald Reagan and Chairman of the Republican National Committee from 1993 to 1996, announced that he would run for governor on February 17, 2003. He had previously failed to be elected to the U.S. Senate for Mississippi in 1982, and in 2002 he travelled the state for several months to gauge support for his gubernatorial bid.

Endorsements

Results

General election

Campaign

Musgrove campaigned as an independent and conservative candidate, downplaying his membership in the Democratic Party and avoiding inviting any national figures to support him. A key message of Musgrove's campaign was that Barbour's support for free trade would cost jobs in Mississippi.

Barbour attacked Musgrove for his flawed leadership of the state, blaming him for the state of the economy of Mississippi. He was helped by the President, George W. Bush, who made three trips to the state to support Barbour. Several other leading Republican figures came to Mississippi to support Barbour including Dick Cheney, Jeb Bush and Rudy Giuliani.

A poll in October 2003 showed Barbour having a narrow lead, with 50% saying they would vote for him as against 45% for Musgrove. However another poll at the beginning of November showed Musgrove with 42% against 41% for Barbour and both sides regarded turnout as key to the election.

Exit polls showed that black voters made up a third of the vote and 94% of them backed Musgrove. However among white voters 77% backed Barbour and a quarter of voters who supported Musgrove in his first election in 1999 now backed Barbour.

Predictions

Results

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

• Copiah (largest city: Hazlehurst)

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

• Alcorn (largest city: Corinth)
• Amite (largest city: Gloster)
• Greene (largest municipality: Leakesville)
• Grenada (largest municipality: Grenada)
• Itawamba (largest municipality: Fulton)
• Lafayette (largest city: Oxford)
• Lee (largest municipality: Tupelo)
• Montgomery (largest city: Winona)
• Oktibbeha (largest city: Starkville)
• Tate (largest city: Sentobia)
• Tippah (largest municipality: Ripley)
• Tishomingo (largest city: Iuka)
• Union (largest municipality: New Albany)
• Wayne (largest municipality: Waynesboro)
• Winston (largest city: Louisville)
• Yazoo (largest city: Yazoo City)

References

References

1. "Miss. governor race eyed as '04 harbinger - The Boston Globe".
2. Janofsky, Michael. (November 5, 2003). "Republicans Win Top Posts In Mississippi and Kentucky". [[The New York Times]].
3. (October 28, 2003). "Barbour's bid for Mississippi governor draws GOP heavyweights". [[CNN]].
4. "Official Recapitulation of votes cast in the Democratic Party primary held in the State of Mississippi on the 5th day of August, 2003".
5. (February 17, 2003). "Barbour launches bid for Mississippi governor". CNN.
6. "OpenSecrets".
7. "Official Recapitulation of votes cast in the Republican Party primary held in the State of Mississippi on the 5th day of August, 2003". Mississippi Secretary of State.
8. (November 5, 2003). "Democrats lose Kentucky, Mississippi governorships". CNN.
9. Radelat, Ana. (November 2, 2003). "Miss. governor's race looks tight". [[USA Today]].
10. (November 10, 2003). "Survey data help explain GOP victories in Kentucky, Mississippi". CNN.
11. (September 2, 2003). "Labor Day – One Year Out".