Michael Guest, the newly elected U.S. House Rep. for Mississippi’s Third District, has four priorities for his upcoming term, which begins in January: a farm bill, a comprehensive infrastructure package, a plan for addressing healthcare and a plan for reforming immigration. 

“So many in the Third District work to provide the food we eat every day,” Guest said. “There needs to be a push to reauthorize the farm bill to provide protections to our farmers.”

Guest succeeded Rep. Gregg Harper, who announced his retirement earlier this year. Harper endorsed Guest, who carried 61 percent of the vote in Lauderdale County alone.

Guest, the district attorney for Rankin and Madison Counties, is no stranger to politics and indulged in a familiar election tradition earlier this week: holding signs with his wife on the same Brandon corner on both Monday and Tuesday, asking people to vote.

“And then after the election, we hold up one that says, ‘Thank you,’ ” Guest said. 

Part of that thank you is advocating for the district in Washington. 

Guest said he believed the federal government had a role to play in funding declining infrastructure, a statewide concern the state legislature addressed in a special session this year. For healthcare, Guest said he wanted to look at ways to lower premiums and work to protect rural healthcare providers.

“They provide emergency lifesaving treatment. If you have an automobile accident, a heart attack… after you’re stablized there you can be transfered to another hospital for more specialized care.”

While campaigning, Guest frequently touched on immigration as a concern, advocating for reforming policies for both undocumented and documented immigrants. 

“We need to modernize and expand our programs to make it easier to (legally) gain entry to the country so that once they’re here they can become a part of our economy,” Guest said. “I think we do have to find a way to secure the border – whether with walls, fences or electronic monitoring (to) curb the flow of illegal immigrants and illegal drugs.” 

Guest said that as a district attorney, he saw how the influence of drugs affected communities and crime. By combining border security with policy reforms, Guest said he hoped to decrease the presence of drugs and give working immigrants a livable wage.

“Temporary or seasonal… we can modernize some of the immigration policies that we have – so we can legally allow more to help us in areas where we may have a need,” Guest said. 

Local reaction

The Third Congressional District stretches across Mississippi from east to west, representing more than two dozen diverse counties. Guest said that specifically for East Mississippi he would look to protect the Naval Air Station in Meridian and the Air National Guard. 

“It’s vitally important that our bases stay staffed and funded with everything in place,” Guest said, saying that he would work to avoid any future base closures in Mississippi.

With such a far-flung district, however, Wayman Newell, the Lauderdale County board of supervisors president, said he hoped Guest remembered East Mississippi.

“I’d like to see that he doesn’t forget that Mississippi has two sides,” Newell said. “It seems to me, East Mississippi gets forgotten.”

While Newell said he’d met Guest once and voted for him, Newell said the board hadn’t discussed Lauderdale County’s priorities to Guest in person.

“We’re in dire need of industry in East Mississippi. It seems like everyone else in the state has some but East Mississippi,” Newell said. “We’d like all of our congressional delegates to try to help East Mississippi out.”

Percy Bland, the mayor for Meridian, said he hadn’t yet met Guest but looked forward to meeting him.

“We are hopeful that Rep. Guest continues to provide good government for this area. Protecting the economic driver of military bases in this area is crucial,” Bland said in a statement. “Additionally, we are hopeful for continued partnerships in pursuing economic development opportunities. I am looking forward to what’s on the horizon for our community.”

Working across the aisle

Guest campaign promises about working in Washington will involve compromise since Democrats now have the majority in the Congressional House.

“I think anytime you look at trying to pass legislation, there’s a spirit of cooperation and compromise,” Guest said. “If we’re going to have a Congress in this country, there has to be a forward willingness on both sides to cooperate.”

Though Guest and President Donald Trump come from the same party, Guest said he represented the constituents of the Third District first and foremost, before party politics. 

“I think it’s important we (congressional representatives) all work together to put Mississippi first,” Guest said. “People don’t like the tone of politics – they want to see working together to find common ground… and not the blame game where one side won’t even consider a solution.”

While being a new member comes with a learning curve, Guest said that as a freshman congressional representative, he would have a new perspective. 

“Generally I agree with the policies of the President and what he’s trying to do,” said Guest, who previously criticized Trump’s tariffs. “We have to set partisanship aside… I do not see myself supporting any policy that could hurt the people of Mississippi.”