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Mississippi's 4th Congressional District election, 2026: Difference between revisions

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==Voting information==
==Voting information==
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==Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses==
==Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses==
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Latest revision as of 21:51, 13 January 2026

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U.S. Senate • U.S. House • Appellate courts • How to run for office
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2024
Mississippi's 4th Congressional District
Ballotpedia Election Coverage Badge.png
Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: December 26, 2025
Primary: March 10, 2026
Primary runoff: April 7, 2026
General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times:

7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Voting in Mississippi

Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Republican
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending
Inside Elections: Solid Republican
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
See also
Mississippi's 4th Congressional District
U.S. Senate1st2nd3rd4th
Mississippi elections, 2026
U.S. Congress elections, 2026
U.S. Senate elections, 2026
U.S. House elections, 2026

All U.S. House districts, including the 4th Congressional District of Mississippi, are holding elections in 2026. The general election is November 3, 2026. The primary is March 10, 2026, and a primary runoff is April 7, 2026. The general runoff is December 1, 2026. The filing deadline was December 26, 2025. For more information about the primaries in this election, click on the links below:

Candidates and election results

General election

The candidate list in this election may not be complete.

The primary will occur on March 10, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. Additional general election candidates will be added here following the primary.

General election for U.S. House Mississippi District 4

Carl Boyanton is running in the general election for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 on November 3, 2026.

Candidate
Image of Carl Boyanton
Carl Boyanton (Independent)

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4

Paul Blackman, D. Ryan Grover, and Jeffrey Hulum III are running in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 on March 10, 2026.


Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4

Incumbent Mike Ezell and Sawyer Walters are running in the Republican primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 on March 10, 2026.


Candidate Connection = 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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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Candidate profiles

There are currently no candidate profiles created for this race. Candidate profiles will appear here as they are created. Encourage the candidates in this race to complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey so that their profile will appear here.

Voting information

See also: Voting in Mississippi

Election information in Mississippi: March 10, 2026, election.

What is the voter registration deadline?

  • In-person: Feb. 9, 2026
  • By mail: Postmarked by Feb. 9, 2026
  • Online: N/A

Is absentee/mail-in voting available to all voters?

No

What was the absentee/mail-in ballot request deadline?

  • In-person: N/A
  • By mail: N/A by N/A
  • Online: N/A

What is the absentee/mail-in ballot return deadline?

  • In-person: March 10, 2026
  • By mail: Postmarked by March 10, 2026

Is early voting available to all voters?

No

What were the early voting start and end dates?

N/A to N/A

Are all voters required to present ID at the polls? If so, is a photo or non-photo ID required?

N/A

When are polls open on Election Day?

7:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. (CT)

Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses

Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

No candidate in this race has completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Ballotpedia is seeking 100 percent participation so voters can learn more about all the candidates on their ballots.

Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Mike Ezell Republican Party $449,398 $255,892 $344,971 As of September 30, 2025
Paul Blackman Democratic Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
D. Ryan Grover Democratic Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Jeffrey Hulum III Democratic Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Sawyer Walters Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Carl Boyanton Independent $0 $0 $0 Data not available***

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.
*** Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

General election race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

  • Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
  • Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
  • Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[1]
  • Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[2][3][4]

Race ratings: Mississippi's 4th Congressional District election, 2026
Race trackerRace ratings
1/27/20261/20/20261/13/20261/6/2026
The Cook Political Report with Amy WalterSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
Decision Desk HQ and The HillPendingPendingPendingPending
Inside Elections with Nathan L. GonzalesSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal BallSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe Republican
Note: Ballotpedia reviews external race ratings every week throughout the election season and posts weekly updates even if the media outlets have not revised their ratings during that week.

Ballot access

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in Mississippi in the 2026 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Mississippi, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2026
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source
Mississippi U.S. House Democratic N/A $500 12/26/2025 Source
Mississippi U.S. House Republican N/A $2500 12/26/2025 Source
Mississippi U.S. House Unaffiliated $200 500 12/26/2025 Source


District history

The section below details election results for this office in elections dating back to 2020.

General election

General election for U.S. House Mississippi District 4

Incumbent Mike Ezell (R) defeated Craig Raybon (D) in the general election for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mike Ezell
Mike Ezell (R)
 
73.9
 
215,095
Image of Craig Raybon
Craig Raybon (D)  Candidate Connection
 
26.1
 
75,771

Total votes: 290,866
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4

Craig Raybon (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 on March 12, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Craig Raybon
Craig Raybon  Candidate Connection
 
100.0
 
9,720

Total votes: 9,720
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4

Incumbent Mike Ezell (R) defeated Carl Boyanton (R) and Michael McGill (R) in the Republican primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 on March 12, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mike Ezell
Mike Ezell
 
73.3
 
52,028
Image of Carl Boyanton
Carl Boyanton
 
18.9
 
13,432
Image of Michael McGill
Michael McGill  Candidate Connection
 
7.7
 
5,493

Total votes: 70,953
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

General election

General election for U.S. House Mississippi District 4

Mike Ezell (R) defeated Johnny DuPree (D) and Alden Johnson (L) in the general election for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mike Ezell
Mike Ezell (R)
 
73.3
 
127,813
Image of Johnny DuPree
Johnny DuPree (D)
 
24.6
 
42,876
Image of Alden Johnson
Alden Johnson (L)  Candidate Connection
 
2.0
 
3,569

Total votes: 174,258
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary runoff

Republican primary runoff for U.S. House Mississippi District 4

Mike Ezell (R) defeated incumbent Steven Palazzo (R) in the Republican primary runoff for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 on June 28, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Mike Ezell
Mike Ezell
 
53.8
 
31,225
Image of Steven Palazzo
Steven Palazzo
 
46.2
 
26,849

Total votes: 58,074
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4

Johnny DuPree (D) defeated David Sellers (D) in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 on June 7, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Johnny DuPree
Johnny DuPree
 
84.9
 
9,952
Image of David Sellers
David Sellers
 
15.1
 
1,766

Total votes: 11,718
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 on June 7, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Steven Palazzo
Steven Palazzo
 
31.5
 
16,387
Image of Mike Ezell
Mike Ezell
 
25.0
 
13,020
Image of Clay Wagner
Clay Wagner
 
22.5
 
11,698
Image of Brice Wiggins
Brice Wiggins
 
9.3
 
4,859
Image of Carl Boyanton
Carl Boyanton
 
6.2
 
3,224
Image of Raymond Brooks
Raymond Brooks  Candidate Connection
 
4.6
 
2,405
Image of Kidron Peterson
Kidron Peterson  Candidate Connection
 
0.9
 
449

Total votes: 52,042
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Libertarian Party primary

The Libertarian Party primary scheduled for June 7, 2022, was canceled. Alden Johnson (L) advanced from the Libertarian Party primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 without appearing on the ballot.

General election

General election for U.S. House Mississippi District 4

Incumbent Steven Palazzo (R) won election in the general election for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Steven Palazzo
Steven Palazzo (R)
 
100.0
 
255,971

Total votes: 255,971
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

The Democratic primary scheduled for March 10, 2020, was canceled.

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4

Incumbent Steven Palazzo (R) defeated Robert Deming (R), Samuel Hickman (R), and Carl Boyanton (R) in the Republican primary for U.S. House Mississippi District 4 on March 10, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Steven Palazzo
Steven Palazzo
 
66.8
 
54,318
Robert Deming
 
14.1
 
11,463
Samuel Hickman
 
9.8
 
7,981
Image of Carl Boyanton
Carl Boyanton
 
9.3
 
7,533

Total votes: 81,295
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

District analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about voter composition, past elections, and demographics in both the district and the state.

  • District map - A map of the district in place for the election.
  • Competitiveness - Information about the competitiveness of 2026 U.S. House elections in the state.
  • Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the district and the state.
  • State party control - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.


Below is the district map in place for this election. Click the map below to enlarge it.

2023_01_03_ms_congressional_district_04.jpg
See also: Primary election competitiveness in state and federal government, 2026

This section contains data on U.S. House primary election competitiveness in Mississippi.

Post-filing deadline analysis

The following analysis covers all U.S. House districts up for election in Mississippi in 2026. Information below was calculated on Dec. 26, 2025, and may differ from information shown in the table above due to candidate replacements and withdrawals after that time.

Fifteen candidates — nine Democrats and six Republicans — ran for Mississippi’s four U.S. House districts. That’s 3.8 candidates per district. There were three candidates per district in 2024, 5.8 in 2022, 3.8 in 2020, 3.5 in 2018, 2.8 in 2016, and 4.3 in 2014.

No districts were open in 2026, meaning all incumbents — one Democrat and three Republicans — ran for re-election. There was one district open in 2018, the only election cycle since 2014 in which a district was open.

Five primaries — three Democratic and two Republican — were contested in 2026. In total, there were three contested primaries in 2024, seven in 2022, five in 2020, three in 2018, three in 2016, and six in 2014.

Two districts — the 2nd and the 4th — tied for the most candidates who ran for a district in 2026. Three candidates ran in each district.

Two incumbents — Reps. Bennie Thompson (D-2nd) and Mike Ezell (R-4th) — faced primary challengers in 2026. There was one incumbent in a contested primary in 2024, four in 2022, three in 2020, one in 2018, two in 2016, and three in 2014.

Candidates filed to run in the Republican and Democratic primaries in all four districts, meaning no districts were guaranteed to either party.

Partisan Voter Index

See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

Heading into the 2026 elections, based on results from the 2024 and 2020 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district is R+21. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 21 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Mississippi's 4th the 29th most Republican district nationally.[5]

2020 presidential election results

The table below shows what the vote in the 2024 presidential election was in this district. The presidential election data was compiled by The Downballot.

2024 presidential results in Mississippi's 4th Congressional District
Kamala Harris Democratic PartyDonald Trump Republican Party
28.0%71.0%

Presidential voting history

See also: Presidential election in Mississippi, 2024

Mississippi presidential election results (1900-2024)

  • 16 Democratic wins
  • 15 Republican wins
  • 2 other wins
Year 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960[6] 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
Winning Party D D D D D D D D D D D D SR[7] D D D R AI[8] R D R R R R R R R R R R R R
See also: Party control of Mississippi state government

Congressional delegation

The table below displays the partisan composition of Mississippi's congressional delegation as of October 2025.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Mississippi
Party U.S. Senate U.S. House Total
Democratic 0 1 1
Republican 2 3 5
Independent 0 0 0
Vacancies 0 0 0
Total 2 4 6

State executive

The table below displays the officeholders in Mississippi's top four state executive offices as of October 2025.

State executive officials in Mississippi, October 2025
OfficeOfficeholder
GovernorRepublican Party Tate Reeves
Lieutenant GovernorRepublican Party Delbert Hosemann
Secretary of StateRepublican Party Michael Watson
Attorney GeneralRepublican Party Lynn Fitch

State legislature

Mississippi State Senate

Party As of January 2026
     Democratic Party 18
     Republican Party 34
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 52

Mississippi House of Representatives

Party As of January 2026
     Democratic Party 42
     Republican Party 78
     Independent 2
     Vacancies 0
Total 122

Trifecta control

Mississippi Party Control: 1992-2025
Four years of Democratic trifectas  •  Fourteen years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Governor R R R R R R R R D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
Senate D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D R[9] D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
House D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R

See also

Mississippi 2026 primaries 2026 U.S. Congress elections
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Mississippi congressional delegation
Voting in Mississippi
Mississippi elections:
202620252024202320222021202020192018
Democratic primary battlegrounds
Republican primary battlegrounds
U.S. Senate Democratic primaries
U.S. Senate Republican primaries
U.S. House Democratic primaries
U.S. House Republican primaries
U.S. Congress elections
U.S. Senate elections
U.S. House elections
Special elections
Ballot access

External links

Footnotes

  1. Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
  2. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
  3. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
  4. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
  5. Cook Political Report, "2025 Cook PVI℠: District Map and List (119th Congress)," accessed July 1, 2025
  6. Although he was not on the ballot, Harry F. Byrd (D) won Mississippi's eight unpledged electoral votes in the 1960 election against Richard Nixon (R) and Democratic Party nominee John F. Kennedy.
  7. States' Rights Democratic Party
  8. American Independent Party
  9. Republicans gained a majority in 2007 when two Democratic state senators switched their party affiliation. Democrats regained the majority as a result of the 2007 elections.


Senators
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
Republican Party (5)
Democratic Party (1)