Mississippi's 4th congressional district

Mississippi's 4th congressional district
	Mississippi's 4th congressional district - since January 3, 2013.
Current Representative	Steven Palazzo (R–Biloxi)
Area	9,536 sq mi (24,700 km2)
Distribution	53.72% urban; 46.28% rural;
Population (2000)	711,219
Median income	33,023
Ethnicity	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+21[1]

Mississippi's 4th congressional district covers the southeastern region of the state. It includes all of Mississippi's Gulf Coast, stretching ninety miles between the Alabama border to the east and the Louisiana border to the west, and extends north into the Pine Belt region. It includes three of Mississippi's four most heavily populated cities: Gulfport, Biloxi, and Hattiesburg. Other major cities within the district include Bay St. Louis, Laurel, and Pascagoula.^[2]

The people of the Mississippi's 4th are currently represented by Republican Steven Palazzo. During the 111th Congress, MS-4, along with Texas's 17th congressional district, was the most Republican district in the nation to be represented by a Democrat,^[3] with a Cook PVI of R+20. However, on November 2, 2010, the Democratic incumbents of both districts were defeated by their respective Republican challengers. State Representative Steven Palazzo defeated Rep. Gene Taylor by a 5% vote differential.^[4]

From statehood to the election of 1846, Mississippi elected representatives at-large statewide on a general ticket.

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.

Counties

Since 2013 the entire counties of Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Pearl River, Stone, George, Marion, Lamar, Forrest, Perry, Greene, Jones, and Wayne, along with the southeastern part of Clarke are counted in this district.

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 from New Orleans to Mobile. US Highway 49 is a vital hurricane evacuation route and is four-laned from Gulfport to Jackson. US Highway 84 enters the state near Waynesboro and is four-laned statewide, passing through Laurel, Brookhaven and Natchez.

Boundaries

Prior to 2003, the district included most of Jackson, all of Natchez and the southwestern part of the state. In 2003, after Mississippi lost a seat in redistricting, the old 4th District was eliminated. Most of Jackson, as well as the bulk of the district's black constituents, were drawn into the 2nd District, while most of Jackson's suburbs were drawn into the 3rd District. As a result, most of the old 5th District was redefined as the new 4th District.^[5]

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 a point due east of Quitman in Clarke County where it is bounded by the 3rd District and then moves in an irregular fashion south of Quitman until it reaches the county line with Wayne County, and then follows the northern and western borders to wholly contain Jones, Forrest, Lamar, and Marion counties until it reaches the Louisiana state line, ultimately bounded by the Pearl River winding to its outlet in Lake Borgne.

History

The Fourth District, like most of Mississippi, is built on a strong history of agriculture.

List of representatives

Representative	Years	Party	Electoral history	Congress
District created March 4, 1847
Albert G. Brown	March 4, 1847 — March 3, 1853	Democratic	[Data unknown/missing.]	30th - 32nd
Wiley Pope Harris	March 4, 1853 — March 3, 1855	Democratic	[Data unknown/missing.]	33rd
William Augustus Lake	March 4, 1855 — March 3, 1857	Know Nothing	[Data unknown/missing.]	34th
Otho Robards Singleton	March 4, 1857 — January 12, 1861	Democratic	Withdrew	35th - 36th
Civil War and Reconstruction			[Data unknown/missing.]	36th - 41st
George Colin McKee	February 23, 1870 — March 3, 1873	Republican	Redistricted to the 5th district.	41st - 42nd
Jason Niles	March 4, 1873 — March 3, 1875	Republican	[Data unknown/missing.]	43rd
Otho Robards Singleton	March 4, 1875 — March 3, 1883	Democratic	Redistricted to the 5th district.	44th - 47th
Hernando D. Money	March 4, 1883 — March 3, 1885	Democratic	Redistricted from the 3rd district.	48th
Frederick G. Barry	March 4, 1885 — March 3, 1889	Democratic	[Data unknown/missing.]	49th - 50th
Clarke Lewis	March 4, 1889 — March 3, 1893	Democratic	[Data unknown/missing.]	51st - 52nd
Hernando D. Money	March 4, 1893 — March 3, 1897	Democratic	[Data unknown/missing.]	53rd - 54th
Andrew F. Fox	March 4, 1897 — March 3, 1903	Democratic	[Data unknown/missing.]	55th - 57th
Wilson S. Hill	March 4, 1903 — March 3, 1909	Democratic	[Data unknown/missing.]	58th - 60th
Thomas U. Sisson	March 4, 1909 — March 3, 1923	Democratic	[Data unknown/missing.]	61st - 67th
T. Jeff Busby	March 4, 1923 — January 3, 1935	Democratic	[Data unknown/missing.]	68th - 73rd
Aaron L. Ford	January 3, 1935 — January 3, 1943	Democratic	[Data unknown/missing.]	74th - 77th
Thomas G. Abernethy	January 3, 1943 — January 3, 1953	Democratic	Redistricted to the 1st district.	78th - 82nd
John B. Williams	January 3, 1953 — January 3, 1963	Democratic	Redistricted from the 7th district. Redistricted to the 3rd district.	83rd - 87th
W. Arthur Winstead	January 3, 1963 — January 3, 1965	Democratic	Redistricted from the 5th district.	88th
Prentiss Walker	January 3, 1965 — January 3, 1967	Republican	[Data unknown/missing.]	89th
Sonny Montgomery	January 3, 1967 — January 3, 1973	Democratic	Redistricted to the 3rd district.	90th - 92nd
Thad Cochran	January 3, 1973 — December 26, 1978	Republican	Resigned after being elected US Senate, took seat on early appointment	93rd - 95th
Vacant	December 26, 1978 — January 3, 1979
Jon Hinson	January 3, 1979 — April 13, 1981	Republican	Resigned	96th - 97th
Vacant	April 13, 1981 — July 7, 1981
Wayne Dowdy	July 7, 1981 — January 3, 1989	Democratic	First elected in a 1981 special election	97th - 100th
Mike Parker	January 3, 1989 — November 10, 1995	Democratic	[Data unknown/missing.]	101st - 103rd
Mike Parker	November 10, 1995 — January 3, 1999	Republican	[Data unknown/missing.]	104th - 105th
Ronnie Shows	January 3, 1999 — January 3, 2003	Democratic	[Data unknown/missing.]	106th - 107th
Gene Taylor	January 3, 2003 — January 3, 2011	Democratic	Redistricted from the 5th district Lost re-election.	108th - 111th
Steven Palazzo	January 3, 2011 – Present	Republican	First elected in 2010.	112th - Present

Elections

2010

2010 Fourth Congressional District of Mississippi Elections
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Republican	Steven Palazzo	105,613	51.93	+26.47
	Democratic	Gene Taylor	95,243	46.83	-27.45
	Libertarian	Tim Hampton	1,741	0.86	+0.86
	Mississippi Reform Party	Anna Revies	787	0.39	+0.39
Turnout			203,384
Majority			9,480	4.84

2008

2006 Fourth Congressional District of Mississippi Elections
Party		Candidate	%	±
	Democratic	Gene Taylor	74.54	-5.25
	Republican	John McCay	25.46	+5.25
Turnout
Majority			49.08

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 . 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

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

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

Historical district boundaries

2003 - 2013

References

↑ "Partisan Voting Index – Districts of the 115th Congress" (PDF). The Cook Political Report. April 7, 2017. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
↑ "About South Mississippi | U.S. House of Representatives". palazzo.house.gov. Retrieved 2016-01-22.
↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-03-29. Retrieved 2009-04-05.
↑ 2010 Mississippi Election Results New York Times. November 12, 2010.
↑ Almanac of American Politics, 2002, p. 872

Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present

Coordinates: 30°59′37″N 89°05′02″W / 30.99361°N 89.08389°W / 30.99361; -89.08389

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[Cook-1] "Partisan Voting Index – Districts of the 115th Congress" (PDF). The Cook Political Report. April 7, 2017. Retrieved April 7, 2017.

[2] "About South Mississippi | U.S. House of Representatives". palazzo.house.gov. Retrieved 2016-01-22.

[3] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-03-29. Retrieved 2009-04-05.

[4] 2010 Mississippi Election Results New York Times. November 12, 2010.

[5] Almanac of American Politics, 2002, p. 872