Mississippi gubernatorial election, 2015
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Mississippi's 2015 elections Governor • Lt. Gov • Attorney General • Secretary of State • Other executive offices • State ballot measures • School boards • Judicial • Candidate ballot access |
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August 4, 2015 |
August 25, 2015 |
November 3, 2015 |
Phil Bryant  |
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The Mississippi gubernatorial election took place on November 3, 2015. The primary was held on August 4. Incumbent Phil Bryant (R) was first elected in 2011. He won re-election to a second term in 2015.[1][2]
A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Mississippi state law stipulates that an individual can only participate in a party's primary if he or she "intends to support the nominations made in the primary" in which he or she participates. However, this is generally considered an unenforceable requirement. Consequently, Mississippi's primary is effectively open.[3][4]
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
Candidates
General election
Phil Bryant (Incumbent) 
[5][1][2][6]
Robert Gray[5][6]
Shawn O'Hara[5][6]
Lost in the primary
Mitch Young[5][6]
Valerie Short[5][6]
Vicki Slater[5][6]
Results
General
| Governor of Mississippi, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Robert Gray | 32.4% | 234,858 | |
| Republican |  Phil Bryant Incumbent |
66.2% | 480,399 | |
| Reform | Shawn O'Hara | 1.4% | 9,950 | |
| Total Votes | 725,207 | |||
| Election results via Mississippi Secretary of State | ||||
Primary
Democratic
Gray defeated Slater and Short in the Democratic primary election; he faced incumbent Phil Bryant (R) and challenger Shawn O'Hara (I) in the general election.[6][7]
| Governor of Mississippi Democratic Primary, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
| Robert Gray |
50.8% | 152,087 | ||
| Vicki Slater | 30.4% | 91,104 | ||
| Valerie Short | 18.8% | 56,177 | ||
| Total Votes | 299,368 | |||
| Election results via Mississippi Secretary of State. | ||||
Republican
Incumbent Bryant defeated Young in the Republican primary. Bryant defeated challengers Robert Gray (D) and Shawn O'Hara (I) in the general election.[6]
| Governor of Mississippi Republican Primary, 2015 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
| Phil Bryant |
91.8% | 254,779 | ||
| Mitch Young | 8.2% | 22,628 | ||
| Total Votes | 277,407 | |||
| Election results via Mississippi Secretary of State. | ||||
Key deadlines
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| February 27, 2015 | Filing deadline for party primary and independent candidates for the primary and general elections |
| March 3, 2015 | Deadline for delivery of candidate lists from state parties to Mississippi Secretary of State |
| July 3, 2015 | Voter registration deadline for primary |
| August 4, 2015 | Primary election |
| August 25, 2015 | Primary runoff (if necessary) |
| October 3, 2015 | Voter registration deadline for general election |
| November 3, 2015 | General election |
| November 13, 2015 | Canvass of Returns and Declaration of Results by County Election Commission(s)[8] |
Voter registration
For full information about voting in Mississippi, contact the state election agency.
Voters in Mississippi can register to vote by filling out registration forms at county clerk offices. The Mississippi Secretary of State also offers a mail-in application that must be accompanied by a copy of a government-issued photo ID, utility bill, paycheck or bank statement. The Mississippi Department of Public Safety is also capable of handling voter registration as part of driver's license applications. Residents can register to vote up to 30 days prior to the next election.[9]
The following qualifications must be met to successfully register to vote in Mississippi:[9]
☐ U.S. citizenship
☐ At least 18 years old by the next general election
☐ Residency in Mississippi and county of registration for at least 30 days
☐ Not under order of imprisonment for felony conviction
☐ Have not been judged "mentally incompetent" in court
Polls
Hypothetical general election match-ups
| Mississippi Governor: three-way race | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Phil Bryant* (R) | Valerie Short (D) | Shawn O'Hara (Reform) | Undecided | Margin of error | Sample size | |||||||||||||
| Mason-Dixon Poll (April 21-23, 2015) | 63% | 28% | 3% | 6% | +/-4.0 | 625 | |||||||||||||
| Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org. | |||||||||||||||||||
Note: An asterisk (*) denotes incumbent status.
Campaign finance
Pre-election report (July 1, 2015 - July 25, 2015)
Comprehensive donor information for this election was collected from the state's campaign finance authority. Based on available campaign finance records, the candidates raised a total of $191,668.5 and spent a total of $140,202.44 during this reporting period. This information was last updated on July 28, 2015.[10]
| Campaign Contributions and Expenditures | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Office | Beginning balance | Contributions | Expenditures | Ending balance |
| Phil Bryant |
Governor of Mississippi | $2,758,188.00 | $123,375.00 | $62,955.00 | $2,818,608.00 |
| Mitch Young |
Governor of Mississippi | $- | $0.00 | $65.00 | $40.00 |
| Robert Gray |
Governor of Mississippi | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Valerie Short |
Governor of Mississippi | $7,112.26 | $5,750.00 | $8,354.48 | $4,507.78 |
| Vicki Slater |
Governor of Mississippi | $35,667.64 | $62,543.50 | $68,827.96 | $29,123.18 |
| Shawn O'Hara |
Governor of Mississippi | $0.00 | $- | $- | $- |
| Grand Total Raised | $191,668.5 | ||||
| Grand Total Spent | $140,202.44 | ||||
Third periodic report (June 1, 2015 - June 30, 2015)
Comprehensive donor information for this election was collected from the state's campaign finance authority. Based on available campaign finance records, the candidates raised a total of $192,964.35 and spent a total of $174,984.23 during this reporting period. This information was last updated on July 10, 2015.[11]
| Campaign Contributions and Expenditures | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Office | Beginning balance | Contributions | Expenditures | Ending balance |
| Phil Bryant |
Governor of Mississippi | $2,721,336.00 | $165,242.00 | $128,391.00 | $2,758,188.00 |
| Mitch Young |
Governor of Mississippi | $- | $0 | $190.00 | $40.00 |
| Robert Gray |
Governor of Mississippi | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Valerie Short |
Governor of Mississippi | $- | $3,870.00 | $5,991.74 | $7,112.26 |
| Vicki Slater |
Governor of Mississippi | $52,226.78 | $23,852.35 | $40,411.49 | $35,667.64 |
| Shawn O'Hara |
Governor of Mississippi | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Grand Total Raised | $192,964.35 | ||||
| Grand Total Spent | $174,984.23 | ||||
Second periodic report (May 1, 2015 - May 31, 2015)
Comprehensive donor information for this election was collected from the state's campaign finance authority. Based on available campaign finance records, the candidates raised a total of $206,264.36 and spent a total of $147,326.95 during this reporting period. This information was last updated on June 26, 2015.[12]
| Campaign Contributions and Expenditures | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Office | Beginning balance | Contributions | Expenditures | Ending balance |
| Phil Bryant |
Governor of Mississippi | $2,649,125.00 | $156,410.00 | $84,198.00 | $2,721,336.00 |
| Mitch Young |
Governor of Mississippi | $100.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $100.00 |
| Robert Gray |
Governor of Mississippi | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Valerie Short |
Governor of Mississippi | $14,928.57 | $5,528.91 | $11,275.61 | $9,250.64 |
| Vicki Slater |
Governor of Mississippi | $62,507.67 | $44,325.45 | $51,853.34 | $52,226.78 |
| Shawn O'Hara |
Governor of Mississippi | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Grand Total Raised | $206,264.36 | ||||
| Grand Total Spent | $147,326.95 | ||||
First periodic report (Jan. 1, 2015 - April 30, 2015)
Comprehensive donor information for this election was collected from the state's campaign finance authority. Based on available campaign finance records, the candidates raised a total of $620,707.9 and spent a total of $332,714.7 during this reporting period. This information was last updated on May 8, 2015.[13]
| Campaign Contributions and Expenditures | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Office | Beginning balance | Contributions | Expenditures | Ending balance |
| Phil Bryant |
Governor of Mississippi | $2,443,915.00 | $485,635.00 | $280,425.00 | $2,649,125.00 |
| Mitch Young |
Governor of Mississippi | $615.07 | $0 | $515.07 | $100.00 |
| Robert Gray |
Governor of Mississippi | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Valerie Short |
Governor of Mississippi | $0 | $30,353.87 | $15,425.30 | $14,928.57 |
| Vicki Slater |
Governor of Mississippi | $0 | $104,419.03 | $36,049.33 | $62,507.67 |
| Shawn O'Hara |
Governor of Mississippi | $0 | $300.00 | $300.00 | $0 |
| Grand Total Raised | $620,707.9 | ||||
| Grand Total Spent | $332,714.7 | ||||
Duties
The governor serves as commander-in-chief of the army and navy of the state, and of the militia, except when they shall be called into the service of the United States, (§ 119), and sees that all laws are upheld and executed (§ 123).
The governor may convene the legislature whenever, in his judgment, the public interest requires it, according to the state constitution. However, during such meetings, the governor cannot consider or act upon subjects or matters other than those designated in the proclamation of the meeting, except impeachments and examinations into the accounts of state officers. (§ 120)
The governor has the power to grant reprieves and pardons and to remit fines. His power does not extend to cases of treason or impeachment and must be exercised with the advice and consent of the Mississippi Senate. (§ 124)
As a privilege of the office, the governor may keep and use the great seal of the state of Mississippi. (§ 126)
Other duties and privileges of the office include:
- Requiring written information from any officer of an executive department of any aspect of his office (§ 121)
- Periodically addressing the legislature on the state of the state and making recommendations (§ 122)
- Suspending county-level treasurers and tax collectors who are suspected of defaulting for the length of the investigation (§ 125)
- Making and sealing all commissions granted by the state of Mississippi (§ 127)
Past elections
2011
- See also: Mississippi gubernatorial election, 2011
| Governor of Mississippi, 2011 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Phil Bryant |
61% | 544,851 | |
| Democratic | Johnny DuPree | 39% | 348,617 | |
| Total Votes | 893,468 | |||
| Election results via Mississippi Secretary of State | ||||
2007
| Governor of Mississippi, 2007 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Haley Barbour Incumbent |
57.9% | 430,807 | |
| Democratic | John A. Eaves | 42.1% | 313,232 | |
| Total Votes | 744,039 | |||
| Election results via Mississippi Secretary of State | ||||
2003
| Governor of Mississippi, 2003 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Haley Barbour |
52.6% | 470,404 | |
| Democratic | Ronnie Musgrove | 45.8% | 409,787 | |
| Constitution | John Thomas Cripps | 0.7% | 6,317 | |
| Reform | Shawn O'Hara | 0.5% | 4,070 | |
| Green | Sherman Lee Dillon | 0.4% | 3,909 | |
| Total Votes | 894,487 | |||
| Election results via Mississippi Secretary of State | ||||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Mississippi gubernatorial election 2015. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Governor of Mississippi
- State executive official elections, 2015
- Mississippi state executive official elections, 2015
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Clarion Ledger, "Gov. Bryant outlines priorities in State of the State," January 20, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Gulflive.com, "Q&A with Phil Bryant: Mississippi governor discusses 2015 agenda in AP interview," January 3, 2015
- ↑ NCSL,"State Primary Election Types," accessed February 6, 2024
- ↑ Ballotpedia research conducted December 26, 2013, through January 3, 2014, researching and analyzing various state websites and codes.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Mississippi Secretary of State, "2015 Candidate Qualifying List," accessed July 24, 2015
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 Associated Press, "Mississippi - Summary Vote Results," August 04, 2015
- ↑ Yahoo! News, "Truck driver wins Dem nomination for Mississippi governor," November 5, 2015
- ↑ Mississippi Secretary of State, "2015 Mississippi Election Calendar," accessed December 17, 2014
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Mississippi Secretary of State, "Voter Registration Information," accessed December 12, 2014
- ↑ Mississippi Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance Filings," accessed July 28, 2015
- ↑ Mississippi Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance Filings," accessed July 12, 2015
- ↑ Mississippi Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance Filings," accessed June 26, 2015
- ↑ Mississippi Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance Filings," May 8, 2015
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