Lauderdale County favors Hyde-Smith in runoff election
Published 5:16 pm Tuesday, November 27, 2018
- Paula Merritt / The Meridian StarJulie Williams, left, and Rosalind Operton sign in with poll workers Brenda Carpenter and Janie Mayo to place their vote Tuesday at Trinity Presbyterian Church.
Mississippi voters returned to the polls Tuesday to cast their ballot in a runoff election for the U.S. Senate between Cindy Hyde-Smith and Mike Espy.
Neither Republican Hyde-Smith, appointed earlier this year by Gov. Phil Bryant, nor Democrat Espy received the 51 percent necessary to win the senate seat, formerly held by Thad Cochran, in the Nov. 6 election.
Lauderdale County precincts reported high turnout, with the First Baptist Church, at 701 26th Avenue, reporting over 385 votes by 4 p.m.
Cindy Hyde Smith received 11,644 votes in Lauderdale County, or 57.75, pct. to Mike Espy’s 8,500, or 42.15 pct., according to the Circuit Clerk. There were 20 write-in votes.
There were 20,180 votes cast among 44,2445 registered voters, or 45.61 pct.
“Turnout has been steady all day,” Robert Dean, the poll worker overseeing the precinct, said. “It’s been about the same turnout as the last election.”
Jeff Tate, an election commissioner, said that 52 percent of registered voters cast their ballots three weeks ago and that this election could have high turnout as well.
At the end of the night, 45 percent of registered voters had cast ballots in Lauderdale County.
Hyde-Smith received 11,644 votes, or 57.75 pct., to Mike Espy’s 8,500, or 42.15 pct., according to the Circuit Clerk. There were 20 write-in votes.
“The turnout is higher than what I expected,” Tate said in the afternoon. “We’re not getting any real complaints — other than running out of stickers at some of the precincts. But that’s a good thing.”
Tate added that some attorneys with the Department of Justice had checked in on the election, something they’d also done for the Meridian mayor’s race last year, but hadn’t noted any problems.
“Everything is going good,” Tate said.
In the Nov. 6 election, a majority of Lauderdale County voters chose Cindy Hyde-Smith, at 44 percent, or 10,033 votes. Aside from 20 write-in votes, 35 percent, or 8,123 voters, chose Mike Espy; 18 percent, or 4,068 voters, chose Chris McDaniel; and 2 percent, or 548 voters, chose Tobey Bartee.
