In-person and mail-in absentee ballots are now available in circuit clerk’s office statewide for the 2026 primary elections, marking the start of Mississippi’s congressional midterm election cycle.
Primary elections will take place on March 10, with the deadline for Mississippians to register to vote being Feb. 9. For those who are eligible to vote beforehand but cannot visit their circuit clerk’s office during the work week, Saturday in-person absentee voting dates for this year’s primaries are Feb. 28 and March 7 from 8:00 a.m. until noon. The last day to vote in-person absentee is March 7, while mail-in absentee ballots must be postmarked on or before election day.
How to vote absentee in Mississippi
Mississippians may utilize the Secretary of State’s Y’all Vote website, which includes an absentee voting FAQ, or contact their local circuit clerk to verify eligibility. If eligible, ballots will be provided upon request by circuit clerks, whether a voter receives a ballot through the mail and mails it back or votes absentee in-person.
Who’s running for Congress in Mississippi?
U.S. Senate
U.S. Senate seats are purposely staggered, meaning just one of the state’s two seats will be on the ballot in 2026. After Republican Sen. Roger Wicker won a third full term in 2024, it’s Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith’s turn to see if she can keep her seat inside the capitol for a second full term.
Even before Hyde-Smith officially announced her reelection bid, candidates were beginning to line up to challenge the incumbent. The first to publicly launch their campaign was Democrat-turned-independent Ty Pinkins, who lost to Wicker last cycle. Pinkins, a Delta-based attorney, was the lone independent to file for the midterms race.
One Republican, doctor and business owner Sarah Adlakha from Ocean Springs, filed to challenge Hyde-Smith in the primary. Three Democrats filed: Columbus-based district attorney Scott Colom, Marine Corps veteran Albert Littell, and educator and civil rights advocate Priscilla Till.
Hyde-Smith is a former state senator and agriculture commissioner from Brookhaven who has used her seven years in Washington to prove herself as one of the more conservative lawmakers, holding staunch pro-life and pro-gun views.
She’s been an advocate for farmers through her position on the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Forestry, and Nutrition, plus publicly working to make sure the Yazoo Backwater Pump Project happens to prevent further flooding in the Delta. She has an endorsement from President Donald Trump.
Those running for U.S. Senate:
- Cindy Hyde-Smith (R)
- Sarah Adlakha (R)
- Scott Colom (D)
- Albert Littell (D)
- Priscilla Till (D)
- Ty Pinkins (I)
U.S. House District 1
While incumbent Rep. Trent Kelly won’t have any challengers in the Republican primary, there are a couple of Democrats hoping to squash his efforts at a sixth term. Prominent civil rights attorney Cliff Johnson and broadcaster-turned-politician Kelvin Buck are slated to face off in the Democratic primary. Johnson is the director of the MacArthur Justice Center at the University of Mississippi School of Law, and Buck previously served in the Mississippi House and as mayor of Holly Springs.
Kelly, a military veteran and attorney, was first elected in 2015 and currently serves on the House Armed Services Committee, where he is chair of the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee. He also serves on the House Agriculture Committee and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, where he is chair of the Defense Intelligence & Overhead Architecture Subcommittee. He has an endorsement from President Donald Trump.
Those running for House District 1:
Mississippi’s 1st Congressional District is made up of 21 counties in the northeast corner of the state. It includes Southaven, Tupelo, Oxford, Columbus, and Olive Branch.
U.S. House District 2
Mississippi’s longest-serving member of Congress, Rep. Bennie Thompson, is seeking his 18th term after first being elected in 1993. The Democrat has become one of his party’s most recognizable names on a national scale after co-chairing the House committee that investigated the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. He was also chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security from 2007-11 and again from 2019-23.
But, for the first time in a long time, Thompson is being challenged by more than one person on the Democratic side. Evan Turnage, a Yale-educated attorney from Jackson who has worked for Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), is running. Another political newcomer, Pertis Williams III, is also running.
Republican oilman Kevin Wilson from Natchez is running against Ron Eller, a cardiothoracic physician assistant in Jackson, in the GOP primary. Bennie Foster, who works as the chief operating officer at New Vineyard Church in Jackson, filed as an independent.
Those running for House District 2:
- Bennie Thompson (D)
- Evan Turnage (D)
- Pertis Williams III (D)
- Ron Eller (R)
- Kevin Wilson (R)
- Bennie Foster (I)
Mississippi’s 2nd Congressional District is made up of 28 counties concentrated along the Mississippi River and in the Delta region and holds portions of Madison and Hinds counties, including most of the city of Jackson.
U.S. House District 3
For the second cycle in a row, Rep. Michael Guest will have no challengers on the Republican side. However, one Democrat and one Libertarian are hoping to prevent Guest from grabbing a fifth term.
Former professional baseball player and now regenerative farmer Michael Chiaradio is running as a Democrat. Erik Kiehle, a property manager from Meridian, is running as a Libertarian.
Guest is a former prosecutor from Rankin County who was first elected in 2018. He currently serves as chair of the House Committee on Ethics and holds spots on the House Homeland Security and House Appropriations Committees. He has an endorsement from President Donald Trump.
Those running for House District 3:
Mississippi’s 3rd Congressional District covers central and southern portions of the state while stretching from the Louisiana border to the Alabama border. It includes a sliver of Jackson and the entireties of Brookhaven, Madison, Meridian, and Starkville.
U.S. House District 4
Rep. Mike Ezell has drawn one challenger on the Republican side. Sawyer Walters previously worked as a staffer for former Rep. Steven Palazzo, who Ezell unseated in 2022. Three Democrats and one independent are also trying to prevent Ezell from getting a third term in Washington.
Democrats running are Paul Blackman, D. Ryan Grover, and Jeffrey Hulum III. Blackman is a Navy veteran and political newcomer. Grover is a businessman who was the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor in 2023. Hulum is a member of the Mississippi House of Representatives and sits on several committees, including being vice chair of the Marine Resources Committee. Carl Boyanton is running as an independent.
Ezell, a former Jackson County sheriff and longtime law enforcement officer, currently serves on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, where he is chair of the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee. He also serves on the House Natural Resources Committee. He has an endorsement from President Donald Trump.
Those running for House District 4:
- Mike Ezell (R)
- Sawyer Walters (R)
- Paul Blackman (D)
- D. Ryan Grover (D)
- Jeffrey Hulum III (D)
- Carl Boyanton (I)
Mississippi’s 4th Congressional District covers the southeastern portion of the state, including part of the Pine Belt and all of the Coast. It has three of the state’s four most populous cities: Gulfport, Biloxi, and Hattiesburg.