The Mississippi Republican party has some welcoming news. 8 elected officials who were either Democrat or Independent have decided to join the Republican Party in a stunning turn of events. The GOP state chairman says he doesn’t think this is the last time folks will see this type of thing happen.
As the country continues to lurch farther and farther to the left in the direction of Congresswomen Ilhan Omar, AOC, Rashida Tlaib, and Ayanna Pressley, many moderates in the party are beginning to feel like they no longer fit it. Immigration has bolstered this radical shift over the last couple of decades, causing a significant change to the United States culture. WLOX reported:
“We have had a relentless focus on switching conservative Democrats over to the Republican party,” explained MSGOP Chairman Lucien Smith. “They recognize increasingly that there is only one party that represents the conservative values of our state and that is the Republican party.”
All eight of the latest party switchers were from Smith and Covington Counties and one District Attorney whose district covers those areas. But the conservation didn’t take long to expand to the national party ties.
“We are in a scenario in this country where you can choose to be a member of the party led by Donald J. Trump or you can choose to be a member of the socialist Democratic party led by Bernie Sanders,” noted Governor Tate Reeves.
Millsaps Department of Government and Politics chair Dr. Nathan Shrader says given the GOP sweep in statewide offices last year and the approval rating for Donald Trump, it opens the door to this.
“They have a plausible argument to make with these elected officials that your constituent are already aligning with us, the voting patterns in your district are moving in our direction, you should join the team too,” said Dr. Shrader.
The eight officials who joined the MSGOP are:
- Matt Sullivan, District Attorney for the Thirteenth Circuit Court District (Covington, Jasper, Simpson and Smith Counties), (Former Democrat)
Covington County
- Guy Easterling, Chancery Clerk (Former Independent)
- Bobby Wayne Mooney, Justice Court Judge for the Northern District of Covington County (Former Independent)
Smith County
- Cindy Austin, Chancery Clerk (Former Democrat)
- Anthony Grayson, Circuit Clerk (Former Democrat)
- Mary Lou Powell, Tax Assessor-Collector (Former Democrat)
- Danny Arender, Beat 4 Supervisor (Former Democrat)
- Hulon West, Justice Court Judge for the Southern District of Smith County (Former Democrat)
