Next Tuesday, June 23, will be an election day in Panola County, and statewide, when the Republican Party will hold a run-off for the March primary, which did not produce a clear winner for the nomination to the November election that will include the 2nd Congressional seat currently held by Rep. Bennie Thompson.

All precincts will be open from 7 a.m to 7 p.m. and most of the county’s registered voters are eligible to participate. There are no official party affiliations in Mississippi, and any person who is legally eligible to cast a ballot may take part, except those people who voted in the Democratic Party primary in March.

Voters who did not vote in March, or those who voted for Republicans, may choose between Thomas L. Carey and Brian Flowers for the nominee to face Rep. Thompson in the November general election.

Rep. Thompson has represented the 2nd District in the U.S. House of Representatives and has become part of the senior leadership in the national Democratic Party. Rep. Thompson, a Bolton native, has been chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security since 2019, having also held the position from 2007 to 2011.

The Republicans vying to unseat Rep. Thompson have little name recognition, and are expected to be soundly defeated in the general election.

The Election Commission is not expecting a large turnout at any precinct, some in the north part of the county are likely to have less than 10, but have prepared in the same manner it handles large Presidential elections.

The commissioners this week have issued a request for all voters planning to take part in the primary runoff to observe the recommendations of state health officials and wear a face mask while at the polling places.