Missy Warren McGee
Member of the Mississippi House of Representatives from the 102nd district
Assumed office
October 13, 2017
Preceded byToby Barker
Personal details
Born
Missy Warren McGee

(1966-03-31) March 31, 1966
Hattiesburg, Mississippi, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Children2
Residence(s)Hattiesburg, Mississippi, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Southern Mississippi (BS, MA)
OccupationPolitician, speech communication instructor

Missy Warren McGee (born March 31, 1966) is an American politician, representing the 102nd district in the Mississippi House of Representatives since 2017.

Early life and education

McGee was born on March 31, 1966, in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and attended Hattiesburg High School.[1] Afterwards, she enrolled at the University of Southern Mississippi, where she graduated with a bachelor of science degree in speech communication.[2] She earned her master's degree in speech communication from the same alma mater.[2] After graduation, she worked as a Legislative Assistant for Congressman Trent Lott in Washington, D.C.[3] She moved back to Mississippi and has worked as an instructor for speech communication at the University of Southern Mississippi.[2]

Career

McGee decided to run in a special election to fulfill the last two years of the outgoing Representative Toby Barker who was elected Mayor of Hattiesburg.[3][4] In the special election, she ran against three others: Cory Ferraez, Casey Mercier, and Kathryn Rehner, all listed without party labels.[4] McGee and Rehner advanced to a runoff after receiving the most votes of the four candidates, with McGee receiving about 45% of the vote and Rehner 24%.[5][6] McGee won the run-off with 2,110 votes to 1,000 votes, a 67.8%–32.2% margin.[6][7] She was sworn in on October 13, 2017.[8] Then-Republican Governor Phil Bryant issued a congratulatory statement to McGee in response to the win.[7]

The election win was notable for two reasons. First, McGee is the second women to hold the District 102 seat, with the last being Evelyn Gandy, former Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi.[3] Secondly, it allowed Republicans to maintain a supermajority in the Mississippi House.[9] Although McGee was listed as independent on the ticket, McGee was supported by Republicans while her main contender, Rehner, was supported by Democrats.[7] Once elected, McGee listed herself as Republican and emphasized her moderate viewpoints, stating "This is not about party to me."[10]

McGee ran unopposed in the 2019 Republican primary election, and, in the general election, she faced off against Brandon Rue.[6] McGee won with 65.04% of the vote.[11][6]

For the 2021 House session, McGee serves as the Vice-Chair for the Public Health and Human Services committee and on the following other committees: Apportionment and Elections, Medicaid, Transportation, and Universities and Colleges.[1]

Political positions

During the 2017 election, McGee campaigned on improving the public school system, infrastructure, and reducing brain drain.[12]

McGee was the only Republican to vote against a 2019 heartbeat abortion bill.[13] Although she voted yes to a 15-week abortion ban in 2018, McGee emphasized that she couldn't support the bill, stating, "...[I] cannot support legislation that makes such hard line, final decisions for other women."[14]

In 2020, McGee voted yes on the bill to change the Mississippi State Flag.[15]

Personal life

McGee is married to her husband Sean McGee and has two sons.[1][2] They are Methodist.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Missy McGee". billstatus.ls.state.ms.us. Mississippi House of Representatives. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "About Missy". missymcgee.org. The Committee to Elect Missy McGee. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 Ciurczak, Ellen (December 28, 2017). "Rep. Missy McGee: 'I feel the responsibility to pay it forward'". Hattiesburg American. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  4. 1 2 Paton, Alex (September 12, 2017). "Forrest County special election to fill house seat 102". Supertalk Mississippi. Supertalk.FM. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  5. ↑ Burns, Haskel (September 12, 2017). "Missy McGee, Kathryn Rehner headed to runoff for Mississippi House District 102". Hattiesburg American. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Missy Warren McGee - Ballotpedia". Ballotpedia. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  7. 1 2 3 "Republican wins Mississippi House seat in special election". Associated Press. October 4, 2017. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  8. ↑ "Missy Magee sworn in to HD102 seat". Y'all Politics. October 13, 2017. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  9. ↑ Ganucheau, Adam (October 3, 2017). "Missy McGee win in Hattiesburg helps House GOP hold supermajority". Mississippi Today. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  10. ↑ Ganucheau, Adam (October 5, 2017). "Missy McGee brings moderate Republican values to House". Mississippi Today. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  11. ↑ Beveridge, Lici (November 6, 2019). "Forrest County: How they voted in the 2019 general election". Hattiesburg American. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  12. ↑ "Issues". missymcgee.org. The Committee to Elect Missy McGee. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
  13. ↑ Mitchell, Justin (February 14, 2019). "She's a pro-life Christian from Miss. — and the only Republican to vote 'no' on abortion bill". Clarion Ledger. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  14. ↑ Ulmer, Sarah (February 15, 2019). "Turning against the party trends on abortion vote – Reps. Missy McGee (R) and Jay Hughes (D)". Y'all Politics. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  15. ↑ Bologna, Giacomo; Ramseth, Luke (June 28, 2020). "How every Mississippi lawmaker voted on historic state flag bill". Clarion Ledger. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
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