Trump Endorses Mississippi Governor Ahead of Nov. 7 Election

Then-Mississippi Republican gubernatorial candidate Tate Reeves (R) speaks alongside then-President Donald Trump during a "Keep America Great" campaign rally at BancorpSouth Arena in Tupelo, Mississippi, on Nov. 1, 2019. Brandon Dill/Getty Images

Former President Donald Trump endorsed Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves’s reelection bid on Nov. 1, just six days before voters head to the polls to pick the state’s next governor.

“Crooked [President] Joe Biden is absolutely destroying our country. He threw open the border, he wrecked our economy, inflation is a disaster, and everything else is just more expensive. It’s not good,” President Trump said in a video shared by Mr. Reeve on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“The citizens of Mississippi must not let that happen. Joe Biden’s people are funding Brandon Presley’s campaign. They own him. He'll do whatever they want him to do,” the former president continued.

“So, vote to reelect my friend, Gov. Tate Reeves. He’s done a fantastic job. The radical left maniacs who are attacking me are also after him. I’m asking you to make time to vote. Go out and find that time. You gotta vote for Gov. Tate Reeves. He fights for the people of Mississippi and he has my total and complete endorsement.”

Calling the former president his friend, Mr. Reeves asked his supporters to share the video with others, saying that it would “help them remember the importance of voting on Tuesday November 7!”

President Trump also posed an endorsement video on his Truth Social account Wednesday, calling the incumbent Mississippi governor “a fighter” who is “tough on crimes” and “loves America.”

On Nov. 7, Mississippi and Kentucky are both electing governors. Last week, the Cook Political Report moved the Mississippi gubernatorial race from “likely Republican” to “lean Republican.”

“Republican Gov. Tate Reeves still has the edge, according to Republicans and Democrats nationally and locally we’ve talked to, but it’s morphed into a competitive fight with added intrigue heading into Election Day thanks to an unusually strong challenger in Brandon Presley,” wrote Jessica Taylor, the Cook Political Report’s editor.

Ms. Taylor added, “There is also an increasing scenario that neither candidate will top 50% on Nov. 7, which means the contest could head to a runoff three weeks later.”

Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves, here speaking at the White House in September 2020, is lobbying lawmakers to eliminate the state’s income tax in 2023. Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

Meanwhile, RealClearPolitics’s polling average shows Mr. Reeves leading Mr. Presley by 9.5 percentage points.

Mississippi is a red state, with the last Democratic governor being Ronnie Musgrove, who won in 1999. President Trump won Mississippi by 16 percentage points in 2020.

President Trump’s endorsement came on the same day that Mr. Reeves and his challenger Mr. Presley met in a televised debate, where the two candidates swapped accusations of deceit and unethical activity. One early exchange centered around Medicaid expansion, which Mr. Reeves opposes and Mr. Presley supports.

Both the Democratic Governors Association (DGA) and the Republican Governors Association (RGA) took to X to support their candidate on Wednesday evening.

“Tate Reeves has failed to expand Medicaid and protect rural hospitals. Because of his inaction, 220,000 hard-working Mississippians don’t have access to affordable health care,” the DGA wrote. “On DAY ONE, @BrandonPresley will change that.”

“@tatereeves has been delivering results for Mississippi, & whether it’s been historic job growth, tax cuts, record pay raises for teachers, or drastic improvements in educational outcomes, there’s no doubt that MS is going in the right direction thanks to his leadership,” the RGA wrote.

Brandon Presley, Democratic candidate for Mississippi governor, addresses a group of business leaders at the 2023 Hobnob, sponsored by the Mississippi Economic Council, in Jackson, Miss., on Oct. 26, 2023. Rogelio V. Solis/AP Photo

Mr. Reeves has endorsed President Trump for president in 2024 and spoken out against indictments against the former president.

“The Biden Administration’s attempts to interfere in the election by weaponizing law enforcement are corrupt and wrong. They have proven they will do anything to ‘get’ Donald Trump, and trample ethics, the rule of law, and our national unity to do it,” Mr. Reeves wrote on X in August. “And it all started with Brandon Presley’s top backer, Bennie Thompson.”

Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), chairman of the Jan. 6 committee, endorsed Mr. Presley on Jan. 12, the same day the Democrat announced his candidacy for governor. In his endorsement statement, Mr. Thompson called Mr. Presley “a leader who cares” and someone who “will put the people first.”

In September, 25 Republican governors, including Mr. Reeves, sent a letter to President Biden, demanding information answers on illegal immigration.

“Americans deserve to know the truth about how bad Biden’s border crisis has become,” Mr. Reeves wrote on X accompanying the letter. “He can try to hide it all he wants, but we know his open-border policies have flooded our states with fentanyl and illegal aliens.”