Mississippi GOP waiting for Supreme Court to let it suppress Black votes

Mississippi Republicans are lining up the political dominos to suppress Black votes and solidify their stranglehold on statewide politics. 

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That’s the impression one gets from a social media post Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves sent Friday to announce a special session to gerrymander the voter map for the state’s Supreme Court districts.

Last August, a federal court ordered Mississippi to redraw its Supreme Court voter map. It concluded that existing district lines were functionally racist and suppressed Black voters’ power. Among all states, Mississippi has the highest percentage of Black residents, at nearly 38%. 

But Reeves wants the legislature to delay compliance with that order until the Federalist Society–allied justices on the Supreme Court do what many people expect them to do in the Louisiana v. Callais voting rights case: that is, to further gut the Voting Rights Act by permitting racist gerrymandering, ushering in a new era of political discrimination. 

And the governor appears to be counting on the Supreme Court to do just that. Reeves’ social media post included an official proclamation invoking his executive powers to stave off the court-ordered redistricting until 21 days after the Supreme Court issues its decision in Louisiana v. Callais.