Zakiya Summers
Zakiya Summers (Democratic Party) is a member of the Mississippi House of Representatives, representing District 68. She assumed office on January 7, 2020. Her current term ends on January 4, 2028.
Summers (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the Mississippi House of Representatives to represent District 68. She won in the general election on November 7, 2023.
Biography
Summers earned a B.A. in broadcast journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia in May 2005. She began working as the director of communications and advocacy at the ACLU of Mississippi in September 2015. Summers worked as the director of communications and events for One Voice from April 2012 to November 2014, as a public relations manager for the Jackson Medical Mall Foundation from August 2008 to March 2012, and as a news producer at WLBT-TV 3 from 2006 to 2009.[1]
Summers was appointed to serve as the Hinds County District 3 election commissioner in 2015 and went on to win a full term in 2016. She resigned in February 2019 in order to run for state legislature. Summers has served as co-chair for the Mississippi Sickle Cell Foundation, as a board member of the University Mississippi Medical Center Community Advisory Board, as secretary for the Jayne Avenue Neighborhood Association, as public relations committee chair for the NAACP Jackson Branch, and as a Class Two Fellow of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation Community Leadership Network. She has also served on the United Way of the Capitol Area’s Young Professional Leaders Council, Women for Progress of Mississippi, Hinds County Federation of Democratic Women, Hinds County Health Department Family Planning Council, Jackson Association of Black Journalists, and Zeta Phi Beta Sorority.[1]
Committee assignments
2025-2026
Summers was assigned to the following committees:
- Technology Committee
- House Tourism Committee
- Workforce Development Committee
- House Drug Policy Committee
- House County Affairs Committee
- House Technology Committee
2023-2024
Summers was assigned to the following committees:
- Apportionment and Elections Committee
- House County Affairs Committee
- House Education Committee
- Public Health and Human Services Committee
- Workforce Development Committee
2020-2021
Summers was assigned to the following committees:
- Public Health and Human Services Committee
- Workforce Development Committee
- Apportionment and Elections Committee
- House County Affairs Committee
- House Education Committee
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2023
See also: Mississippi House of Representatives elections, 2023
General election
General election for Mississippi House of Representatives District 68
Incumbent Zakiya Summers won election in the general election for Mississippi House of Representatives District 68 on November 7, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Zakiya Summers (D) | 100.0 | 3,678 |
| Total votes: 3,678 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Mississippi House of Representatives District 68
Incumbent Zakiya Summers advanced from the Democratic primary for Mississippi House of Representatives District 68 on August 8, 2023.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Zakiya Summers | 100.0 | 1,474 |
| Total votes: 1,474 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Summers in this election.
2019
See also: Mississippi House of Representatives elections, 2019
General election
General election for Mississippi House of Representatives District 68
Zakiya Summers defeated Jon Pond in the general election for Mississippi House of Representatives District 68 on November 5, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Zakiya Summers (D) | 73.2 | 4,562 |
 | Jon Pond (R) | 26.8 | 1,671 | |
| Total votes: 6,233 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Mississippi House of Representatives District 68
Zakiya Summers defeated Cassandra Welchlin and Lonnie Holmes in the Democratic primary for Mississippi House of Representatives District 68 on August 6, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Zakiya Summers | 55.1 | 2,010 |
| Cassandra Welchlin | 29.1 | 1,064 | ||
| Lonnie Holmes | 15.8 | 577 | ||
| Total votes: 3,651 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Natarsha Lindsey (D)
- Jordon Hillhouse (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Mississippi House of Representatives District 68
Jon Pond advanced from the Republican primary for Mississippi House of Representatives District 68 on August 6, 2019.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Jon Pond | 100.0 | 1,014 |
| Total votes: 1,014 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Campaign themes
2023
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Zakiya Summers did not complete Ballotpedia's 2023 Candidate Connection survey.
2019
Zakiya Summers did not complete Ballotpedia's 2019 Candidate Connection survey.
Ballotpedia biographical submission form
The candidate completed Ballotpedia's biographical information submission form:
| “ | What is your political philosophy?
As a lifelong resident of District 68, I have a vested interest in its future. In addition to growing up in the district, I attended its schools, became a member of a church in the district and even purchased my home in District 68. I have intentionally remained in this district, and am raising my family in this district. I have a vision for District 68, and that vision is one of excellence. Is there anything you would like to add? I am a passionate leader and community activist who likes to get things done and do them well. I am a strategic thinker, a problem solver, a hard worker, and a change agent. I am an advocate, a community servant, mother, wife, and a Christian. I am committed to doing my very best to building a strong, healthy, and financially secure district and state alongside my constituents. I have an open mind, a willingness to listen, and the leadership to make a positive change for my community. We can no longer look at what is, but work towards what can be.[2] |
” |
| —Zakiya Summers[1] | ||
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Mississippi scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2024
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In 2024, the Mississippi State Legislature was in session from January 2 to May 4. Special sessions took place on January 19, 2024, and January 25, 2024.
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2023
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, the Mississippi State Legislature was in session from January 3 to April 1.
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2022
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In 2022, the Mississippi State Legislature was in session from January 4 to April 5.
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2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the Mississippi State Legislature was in session from January 5 to April 1.
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2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the Mississippi State Legislature was in session from January 7 to October 10. The session was suspended effective July 1, 2020. It had been previously suspended from March 18 to May 7. The session reconvened from August 10 to October 2.
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See also
2023 Elections
External links
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Candidate Mississippi House of Representatives District 68 |
Officeholder Mississippi House of Representatives District 68 |
Personal |
Footnotes
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Credell Calhoun (D) |
Mississippi House of Representatives District 68 2020-Present |
Succeeded by - |
