Mississippi's 4th congressional district
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| Mississippi's 4th congressional district | |
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| Area | 9,536 mi² (24,698 km²) |
| Population (2000 *109th Congress-100%) | 711,219 |
| Median income | $33,023 |
| Ethnic composition | 75.3% White, 22.6% Black, 1.5% Asian, 1.8% Hispanic, .8% Native American, 1% other |
| Occupation | 30.6% blue collar, 51.9% white collar, 18.4% gray collar |
| Cook PVI | R+16 |
Mississippi's Fourth Congressional District covers the southeastern region of the state. The People of the Fourth District are currently represented by Democrat Gene Taylor of Bay St. Louis.
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[edit] Cities
Three of Mississippi's four most heavily populated cities, Gulfport, Biloxi, Hattiesburg are in the Fourth District. Other major cities within the district include Bay St. Louis, Laurel, and Pascagoula.
[edit] Counties
The entire counties of Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Pearl River, Stone, George, Lamar, Forrest, Perry, Greene, Wayne, and Clarke, most of the county of Jones, and parts of both Jasper and Marion counties are counted in this district.
[edit] Federal highways
Interstate 59 is an important north-south route that traverses the district, while coastal Interstate 10 serves as the major east-west route.
[edit] Boundaries
Prior to 2004 the district included most of Jackson, all of Natchez and the south western part of the state. In 2004, following redistricting, it was then heavily altered due to the loss of one seat in the state and largely replaced the former fifth district. [1]
The perimeter of the current Fourth District extends across the ninety mile coastal southern edge of Mississippi from the Louisiana border to the Alabama border, following the Alabama state line north along the eastern border of the state to the northern boundaries of Clarke and Jasper counties, with its western limit then gerrymandering southwest alongside the 3rd District, through Jasper county and the northeast corner of Jones county, then following the east Jones, and north Forrest and Lamar county lines mostly until it cuts across southwest into Marion to include Columbia, south of which the western district boundary is defined more or less by the Pearl River winding to its outlet in Lake Borgne.
[edit] History
The Fourth District, like most of Mississippi, is built on a strong history of agriculture.
[edit] Political history
[edit] District evolution
[edit] Historical representation
- Otho Robards Singleton resigned on January 12, 1861 upon Mississippi's secession from the union.
- Jon Hinson resigned on April 13, 1981.
[edit] Elections
[edit] 2006
Fourth District incumbent Gene Taylor(D) was re-elected, gathering 80% of the Fourth District's vote. He is considered one of the most conservative Democrats in the House[1]. His district has a Cook Political Report rating of R+16.
Taylor faced challenger Randall "Randy" McDonnell, a former IRS agent. McDonnell, the Republican Party nominee, had also unsuccessfully challenged Taylor in both 1998 and 2000.
Taylor first was elected in 1989 to Mississippi's 5th congressional district, after having lost to Larkin I. Smith in the 1988 race for that open seat, which had been vacated by Trent Lott when Lott made a successful run for the Senate. Smith died eight months later in a plane crash. Taylor came in first in the special election primary to fill the seat, winning the runoff election two weeks later and taking office on October 18, 1989.
In 1990, Taylor won a full term in the 5th District with 81% of the vote, and has been reelected at each election since.
His district was renumbered the 4th after the redistricting of 2000, which cost Mississippi a Congressional seat. In 2004, Taylor was reelected to the House with 64% of their vote, choosing him over both Republican nominee Michael Lott and Reform nominee Tracella Hill.
| 2006 Fourth Congressional District of Mississippi Elections | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Democratic | Gene Taylor | 110,996 | 79.79 | +15.02 | |
| Republican | Randall "Randy" McDonnell | 28,117 | 20.21 | -14.29 | |
| Turnout | 139,113 | ||||
| Majority | 82,879 | 59.58 | |||
[edit] 2004
| 2004 Fourth Congressional District of Mississippi Elections | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Democratic | Gene Taylor | 181,614 | 64.77 | -10.44 | |
| Republican | Mike Lott | 96,740 | 34.50 | +13.26 | |
| Mississippi Reform Party | Tracella Hill | 2,028 | 0.72 | -0.79 | |
| Turnout | 280,382 | ||||
| Majority | 84,874 | 30.27 | |||
[edit] 2002
| 2002 Fourth Congressional District of Mississippi Elections | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Democratic | Gene Taylor | 121,742 | 75.21 | - | |
| Republican | Dr. Karl Cleveland Mertz | 34,373 | 21.24 | - | |
| Libertarian | Wayne L. Parker | 3,311 | 2.05 | - | |
| Mississippi Reform Party | Thomas R. Huffmaster | 2,442 | 1.51 | - | |
| Turnout | 161,868 | ||||
| Majority | 87,369 | 53.98 | |||
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[edit] References
- ^ Almanac of American Politics 2002, p872
