Former president Donald Trump will return to the White House defeating Vice President Kamala Harris in last Tuesday’s elections.
Locally, Trump also proved victorious with Yazoo County voters, beating Harris by 228 votes. Within the local results, Trump earned 4,546 votes to Harris’ 4,318.
Close to 43 percent of Yazoo County’s registered voters arrived at the polls last week. Of the 18,985 registered voters in Yazoo County, 8,156 cast their ballots at the 23 local precincts.
With only a handful of local races on the ballot, it was the federal and state level posts that could have attracted a two percent increase in voter turnout from last year’s local county elections.
Within the United States Senate, incumbent Republican Roger Wicker earned the majority vote in Yazoo County, beating Democrat Ty Pinkins by 489 votes. Within the local results, Wicker earned 4,690 votes compared to Pickins’ 4,201. Statewide, with 63 percent of the precincts in late Tuesday night, Wicker was leading with over 64 percent of the vote. That race was soon called following the polls closing at 7 p.m.
Within the 2nd Congressional District, incumbent Democrat Bennie Thompson beat challenger Republican Ron Eller by 172 votes in Yazoo County. Based on local machine votes, Thompson was trailing Eller. However, results following the tally of the absentee ballots shifted those results. Locally, Thompson earned 4,566 votes compared to Eller’s 4,394 votes.
Statewide, Thompson earned 61.7 percent of the vote to Eller's 38.3 percent. Thompson received 154,233 votes; Eller received 95,706.
Within the Central District, Supreme Court incumbent Jim Kitchens will face Jenifer Branning in a Nov. 26 runoff election. Locally, Branning won over Yazoo County voters with 3,641 votes compared to Kitchens’ 2,845 votes.
One local longtime election commissioner was unseated, however. Incumbent Jerry Alexander, with the Election Commissioner 1 post, was defeated by challenger Thaddeous Hood by 249 votes. Hood earned 1,349 votes compared to Alexander’s 1,100 votes.
Within the local Election Commissioner 3 post, incumbent Gretta Winters defeated challenger Sharonda Johnson by 97 votes. Winters earned 590 votes compared to Johnson’s 493 votes.
On the Yazoo County School District Board, incumbent Gregory Moseley keeps his seat after a 233-vote victory over challenger Marie “Nurse Z” Blanden-Zollicoffer. Moseley earned 664 votes compared to Blanden-Zollicoffer’s 431 votes.
With no opposers on the ticket, other victories within local voters include:
Latrice Westbrook, Court of Appeals, District 2
William Dodd, Yazoo-Mississippi Delta Levee District Commissioner
Chilah Boddy, Election Commissioner 2
Claude Collum Sr., Election Commissioner 5
Lee Ethel “Vent” Hogue, Yazoo County School District Board, District 3
