Most judicial seats on Mississippi’s Nov. 3 ballot are unopposed, limiting contested choices for voters across the state, Magnolia Tribune reported Sept. 15, 2026.
The Magnolia Tribune said one of five Court of Appeals elections is contested. The report listed 57 Chancery races, 14 of them contested, and 63 Circuit races, 11 of them contested.
Contested races named in the report include:
Court of Appeals
District 1, Position 1 – Derek Hopson Jr.; John Weddle
Chancery Court
District 3, Place 1 – Ginger Miller; Jay Westfaul
District 4, Place 3 – Debbra Halford; Ashunda Hampton
District 5, Place 3 – Bridgett Clayton; Tametrice Hodges
District 7, Place 2 – Willie Perkins; W. M. Sanders
District 8, Place 4 – Haley Broom; Stephen Maggio; Frances Yeatts
District 9, Place 2 – Vicki Barnes; Penny Lawson
District 11, Place 2 – Cynthia Brewer; Rhonda Cooper
District 11, Place 3 – Gene Berry; David Bridges; Alan Rhea
District 13, Place 2 – George Schmidt; John Smallwood; Zachary Vaughn
District 16, Place 1 – D. Neil Harris; Jennifer Harris; Matthew Pavlov
District 17, Place 2 – Elizabeth Owens; William Scott
District 17, Place 3 – Gwen Baptist; Malenda Meacham
District 18, Place 1 – Janessa Hicks; Sarah Liddy; Jennifer Shackelford; Michael Watts
District 20, Place 1 – Bo Agney; Keri Carroll; Michael Wolfe
Circuit Court
District 3, Place 2 – Bart Adams; Shirley Byers; Steven Judera
District 11, Place 2 – Stephanie Morris-Harris; David Tisdell
District 14, Place 2 – Brendon Adams; Matt Kitchens; Albert Turnage
District 15, Place 2 – Ryan Bruhl; Prentiss Harrell
District 18, Place 1 – Brad Thompson; Eric Tiebauer
District 19, Place 1 – Matt Lachaussee; Justin Lovorn
District 19, Place 2 – Kathy King Jackson; Leilani Tynes
District 20, Place 1 – Sarah Butler; Scott Gilbert; Carter Smith
District 21, Place 1 – Joseph Neyman; Gordon Shaw Jr.
District 21, Place 4 – Lucius Edwards; John Hughes
District 22 – Tim Howard; Akillie Oliver
Magnolia Tribune is the source of the race listings and counts cited above.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
