With more than half the vote counted, Mississippi Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves was declared the unofficial winner Tuesday night in the state´s Republican primary runoff for governor.
With 63 percent of the vote counted unofficially, Mr. Reeves has 55.02% to Mr. Waller´s 44.8%, according to The Associated Press, which called the race for Mr. Reeves.
Mr. Reeves faces a November challenge against Mississippi´s Democratic attorney general Jim Hood, who cruised to an easy victory in his party´s primary on Aug. 6.
One of the starkest divisions between the candidates now is over expanding Obamacare in Mississippi, a step Mr. Hood favors and Mr. Reeves, like incumbent Republican Gov. Phil Bryant, opposes.
It´s unclear how much money and attention the race — one of three gubernatorial contests along with Louisiana and Kentucky — may generate outside Mississippi.
While a GOP loss seems unlikely — Mississippi´s last Democratic gubernatorial victory came in 1999 when the then-majority Democratic state House of Representatives gave it to their party standard bearer — Mr. Hood has held statewide elected office for 16 years.
Mr. Reeves has been chosen by voters statewide for the same length of time, setting up a long-anticipated battle between two prominent figures in Mississippi for each party.
One complicating issue is an investigation by the attorney general´s office into a development project that linked Mr. Reeves´ neighborhood up with a local shopping center.
Despite cries from state Republicans that his move smacks of rank political opportunism, Mr. Hood has delayed a report on that probe and said he will personally rewrite it prior to November´s election.
Tuesday´s runoff came after competing letters were sent out to Mississippi Republicans in the race´s closing days. One letter, backing Mr. Reeves, had the signatures of people like Henry Barbour, the nephew of Haley Barbour, the powerful former Republican senator and governor; the second in support of Mr. Waller was signed by more old-school GOP figures in the Magnolia State.
¨When one examines who signed each letter, a generational divide emerges, and I think the generational divide represents two traditions of governance in Mississippi¨ said Douglas Bristol, a history professor at the University of Southern Mississippi.
On one side: a traditional GOP; on the other: a Republican Party more amenable to gradual change and liberal trends.
¨Reeves represents the establishment GOP: business-friendly and opposed to expanding government or raising taxes. In that tradition, politicians are viewed as interchangeable so long as they toe the line, which makes them focus on their own careers,” Mr. Bristol said. ¨Waller, on the other hand, represents the paternalism of old families that have long governed Mississippi. Having been part of the ruling elite for generations, they tend to take the long view and resist the orthodoxy of the national party. In sum, they do not believe politics are one-size-fits-all in Mississippi.¨
Polls closed at 7 p.m.
At least one glitch was reported in Tuesday´s ballotting as machines in Hinds County allowed Democrats, who should have been locked out of voting due to their partisan position Aug. 6, to cast ballots in the Republican runoff. It wasn´t immediately clear how many such voters were involved.
¨It´s one hell of a mess,¨ Hinds County GOP Chairman Pete Perry told The Clarion-Ledger late Tuesday morning.
Mr. Bryant, forbidden by term limits from seeking a third term, has endorsed Mr. Reeves.
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