Elected and Appointed Government Officials

Delbert Hosemann’s tenure as Mississippi’s Secretary of State has marked a quantum shift in how the office has been run.  Having taken office in 2007, Hosemann has been called “the most overqualified Secretary of State in Mississippi’s history.” Ushered in on a wave of good feelings from the “old lady on the park bench” TV ads, he’s capitalized on that quirky persona of a really smart and earnest, albeit kind of dorky guy.

His list of accomplishments in office has been extensive.  From early victories like championing the metal theft bill to a massive overhaul of the office’s website to make records filings easier and more transparent, he started off on the right foot.  The last few years have notably seen an overhaul in Mississippi’s limited liability company laws/policies as well as success in implementing Voter ID, assisting on redistricting and the rollout of the nationally recognized “Yallbusiness.com”.  He’s accomplished the controversial without the legal entanglements that usually accompany big things.

While he finishes his third term, speculation now starts to turn to both how he will finish out this term and what will come in 2019.  His latest crusades involve searchable campaign finance reports, early voting/online voter registration and campaign finance reform.  As for 2019, there have been media reports openly speculating his interest in the Lieutenant Governor’s seat, which will be open.