JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi has three contested U.S. House elections and one incumbent who will win another term with no opposition in the general election.
Republican Rep. Trent Kelly faces Democratic challenger Dianne Dodson Black in north Mississippi’s 1st Congressional District. This is a rematch of the 2022 race, when Kelly defeated Black.
Kelly is a former district attorney and has been in the House since winning a 2015 special election. He is a member of the House Armed Services Committee.
Black, a business owner, says she wants to support President Joe Biden’s economic policies, restore abortion rights and limit access to semiautomatic rifles.
Kelly's campaign raised nearly $1.2 million and spent about $893,000 through mid-October, while Black's campaign raised about $9,400 and spent about $7,400.
Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson faces Republican challenger Ron Eller in the 2nd District, which encompasses most of the city of Jackson, plus rural areas in the Delta and along the Mississippi River.
Thompson is a former Bolton mayor and former Hinds County supervisor. He the longest-serving member of Mississippi’s current congressional delegation, first winning a special election in 1993. He is the ranking Democrat on the House Homeland Security Committee and chaired the committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
Eller, a military veteran and physician assistant, ran unsuccessfully for the 2nd District Republican nomination in 2022. He supports U.S.-Mexico border wall construction and the expansion of domestic energy production.
Thompson's campaign raised and spent just over $1 million through mid-October, while Eller's campaign raised nearly $48,000 and spent about $17,800.
Republican Rep. Michael Guest was unopposed in the primary and the general election for central Mississippi’s 3rd District. Guest is a former district attorney who was first elected to the House in 2018. He is chairman of the House Ethics Committee and vice chairman of the Homeland Security Committee.
Republican Rep. Mike Ezell faces Democratic challenger Craig Elliot Raybon in south Mississippi’s 4th District.
Ezell had a 42-year law enforcement career, including eight years as Jackson County sheriff, before being elected to the House in 2022. He has voted to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and to end military assistance to Ukraine.
Raybon, a first-time candidate, has said he wants to increase the minimum wage, expand vocational training programs and lower prescription drug prices.
Ezell's campaign raised and spent about $1 million through mid-October. Federal Election Commission records show no campaign finance information for Raybon.