1999 Mississippi gubernatorial election

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1999 Mississippi gubernatorial election
Flag of Mississippi (1996-2001).svg
  1995 November 2, 1999
January 4, 2000 (contingent election)
2003  
  David Ronald Musgrove (cropped).jpg Mike Parker.jpg
Nominee Ronnie Musgrove Michael Parker
Party Democratic Republican
Electoral vote6161
House vote8636
Popular vote379,033370,691
Percentage49.62%48.52%

1999 Mississippi gubernatorial election results map by county.svg
County results
Musgrove:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%
Parker:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80%

Governor before election

Kirk Fordice
Republican

Elected Governor

Ronnie Musgrove
Democratic
via contingent election

The 1999 Mississippi gubernatorial election took place on November 2, 1999 to elect the Governor of Mississippi. Incumbent Governor Kirk Fordice, a member of the Republican Party who had been first elected in 1991, was ineligible to run for reelection due to term limits.

Contents

In the general election, Democrat Lieutenant Governor Ronnie Musgrove won a plurality of the vote over Republican Congressman Mike Parker. Per the Mississippi Constitution, since no candidate had received a majority of the vote, the election was decided by the Mississippi House of Representatives in a contingent election. On January 4, 2000, the House voted 86–36, which was nearly along partisan lines, to elect Musgrove governor. [1] As to date, this remains the last time a Democrat was elected Governor of Mississippi.

Democratic primary

Lieutenant Governor Ronnie Musgrove won the Democratic primary, defeating former Commissioner of Public Safety Jim Roberts and 5 other candidates.

Results

Mississippi Democratic gubernatorial primary, 1999 [2]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Democratic Ronnie Musgrove 309,519 56.74
Democratic Jim Roberts 142,61726.14
Democratic Richard Barrett32,3835.94
Democratic Katie Perrone16,4763.02
Democratic Charles Bell13,1592.41
Democratic Carrie Harris11,6452.14
Democratic James W. "Bootie" Hunt11,5722.12
Total votes537,371 100.00

Republican primary

Former U.S. Representative Michael Parker won the Republican primary, defeating former Lieutenant Governor Eddie Briggs and four other candidates.

Results

Mississippi Republican gubernatorial primary, 1999 [3]
PartyCandidateVotes%
Republican Mike Parker 77,674 50.72
Republican Eddie Briggs 42,76327.92
Republican Charlie Williams17,17611.22
Republican Dan Gibson11,3487.41
Republican George "Wagon Wheel" Blair2,4531.60
Republican Shawn O'Hara1,7281.13
Total votes153,142 100.00

General election

Results

Under the 1890 Constitution of Mississippi, gubernatorial candidates must win a majority of the popular vote. In addition, the Mississippi House of Representatives acts as an electoral college; a candidate must win both a majority of the vote and a majority of the state house districts to be elected.

With neither candidate winning the required popular and electoral majority, the House of Representatives, where the Democrats had a supermajority at the time, decided between the two candidates with the highest popular vote. Parker refused to concede, and the House elected Musgrove 86-36 along partisan lines. [1]

CandidatePartyPopular voteElectoral vote House vote
Votes%Votes%Votes%
Ronnie Musgrove Democratic Party 379,03349.626150.008670.49
Michael Parker Republican Party 370,69148.526150.003629.51
Jerry Ladner Reform Party 8,2081.07
Helen Perkins Independent 6,0050.79
Total763,937100.00122100.00122100.00
Source: [4] [5]

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References

  1. 1 2 "Almanac of American Politics 2002 - Gov. Ronnie Musgrove (D) - Mississippi Governor". Archived from the original on 2012-10-22. Retrieved 2012-10-20.
  2. "MS Governor D Primary 1999". Our Campaigns. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  3. "MS Governor R Primary 1999". Our Campaigns. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  4. "MS Governor 1999". Our Campaigns. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  5. "1999 Gubernatorial General Election Results - Mississippi". David Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections. Retrieved December 2, 2016.