Republican Sen. Wicker wins reelection in Mississippi, defeating Democrat Ty Pinkins
Republican Sen. Wicker wins reelection in Mississippi, defeating Democrat Ty Pinkins
FILE - Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., speaks during an event on Capitol Hill in Washington, April 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
FILE - Democrat Ty Pinkins speaks about his campaign for the Mississippi Democratic nomination for United States Senate during a news conference at the Mississippi State Capitol in Jackson, Miss., Jan. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
FILE - U.S. Rep. Trent Kelly, R-Miss., speaks at a rally on Nov. 1, 2019, in Tupelo, Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
FILE - Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., talks during a hearing on Capitol Hill, Jan. 10, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)
FILE - In this undated photo provided by the Ron Eller for Congress Campaign, Republican candidate Ron Eller poses for a photo. (Eric Eller/Ron Eller for Congress Campaign via AP, File)
FILE - U.S. Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., expresses his support of former President Donald Trump, Jan. 2, 2024, in Jackson, Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
FILE - Jackson County Sheriff Mike Ezell greets people after winning Mississippi’s 4th Congressional District race, Nov. 8, 2022, in Pascagoula, Miss. (Hannah Ruhoff/The Sun Herald via AP, File)
Howard Baker looks over his paper ballot while in the privacy kiosk on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, in Jackson, Miss. (AP Rogelio V. Solis)
Stephen Cook wears a “Vote” button and a “I Voted” sticker on his suit coat as he casts his ballot, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, at a north Jackson, Miss., precinct. (AP Rogelio V. Solis)
Blythe Gonzalez, right, asks a question of a Jackson, Miss., precinct worker, unseen, while her husband Jorge Gonzalez, left, waits with his paper ballot, to accompany her to a voting kiosk, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Rogelio V. Solis)
Early morning voters pick up their paper ballots to vote on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, at a north Jackson, Miss., precinct. (AP Rogelio V. Solis)
FILE - Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., speaks during an event on Capitol Hill in Washington, April 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
FILE - Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., speaks during an event on Capitol Hill in Washington, April 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
FILE - Democrat Ty Pinkins speaks about his campaign for the Mississippi Democratic nomination for United States Senate during a news conference at the Mississippi State Capitol in Jackson, Miss., Jan. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
FILE - Democrat Ty Pinkins speaks about his campaign for the Mississippi Democratic nomination for United States Senate during a news conference at the Mississippi State Capitol in Jackson, Miss., Jan. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
FILE - U.S. Rep. Trent Kelly, R-Miss., speaks at a rally on Nov. 1, 2019, in Tupelo, Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
FILE - U.S. Rep. Trent Kelly, R-Miss., speaks at a rally on Nov. 1, 2019, in Tupelo, Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
FILE - Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., talks during a hearing on Capitol Hill, Jan. 10, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)
FILE - Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., talks during a hearing on Capitol Hill, Jan. 10, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)
FILE - In this undated photo provided by the Ron Eller for Congress Campaign, Republican candidate Ron Eller poses for a photo. (Eric Eller/Ron Eller for Congress Campaign via AP, File)
FILE - In this undated photo provided by the Ron Eller for Congress Campaign, Republican candidate Ron Eller poses for a photo. (Eric Eller/Ron Eller for Congress Campaign via AP, File)
FILE - U.S. Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., expresses his support of former President Donald Trump, Jan. 2, 2024, in Jackson, Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
FILE - U.S. Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., expresses his support of former President Donald Trump, Jan. 2, 2024, in Jackson, Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
FILE - Jackson County Sheriff Mike Ezell greets people after winning Mississippi’s 4th Congressional District race, Nov. 8, 2022, in Pascagoula, Miss. (Hannah Ruhoff/The Sun Herald via AP, File)
FILE - Jackson County Sheriff Mike Ezell greets people after winning Mississippi’s 4th Congressional District race, Nov. 8, 2022, in Pascagoula, Miss. (Hannah Ruhoff/The Sun Herald via AP, File)
Howard Baker looks over his paper ballot while in the privacy kiosk on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, in Jackson, Miss. (AP Rogelio V. Solis)
Howard Baker looks over his paper ballot while in the privacy kiosk on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, in Jackson, Miss. (AP Rogelio V. Solis)
Stephen Cook wears a “Vote” button and a “I Voted” sticker on his suit coat as he casts his ballot, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, at a north Jackson, Miss., precinct. (AP Rogelio V. Solis)
Stephen Cook wears a “Vote” button and a “I Voted” sticker on his suit coat as he casts his ballot, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, at a north Jackson, Miss., precinct. (AP Rogelio V. Solis)
Blythe Gonzalez, right, asks a question of a Jackson, Miss., precinct worker, unseen, while her husband Jorge Gonzalez, left, waits with his paper ballot, to accompany her to a voting kiosk, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Rogelio V. Solis)
Blythe Gonzalez, right, asks a question of a Jackson, Miss., precinct worker, unseen, while her husband Jorge Gonzalez, left, waits with his paper ballot, to accompany her to a voting kiosk, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Rogelio V. Solis)
Early morning voters pick up their paper ballots to vote on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, at a north Jackson, Miss., precinct. (AP Rogelio V. Solis)
Early morning voters pick up their paper ballots to vote on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, at a north Jackson, Miss., precinct. (AP Rogelio V. Solis)
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Republican Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi has defeated Democrat Ty Pinkins, a challenger who received little financial support from his own party in a heavily Republican state.
Wicker, 73, is extending his 30-year career on Capitol Hill. He is an attorney and served in the Mississippi state Senate before winning a U.S. House seat in northern Mississippi in 1994. He was appointed to the Senate in 2007 by then-Gov. Haley Barbour after the resignation of fellow Republican Trent Lott.
Wicker is the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and has pushed to expand shipbuilding for the military. He was endorsed by former President Donald Trump.
“It is a blessing to serve in the U.S. Senate, and I look forward to returning to Washington and relentlessly working on the behalf of the great state of Mississippi,” Wicker said in a statement after winning.
Pinkins, 50, is an attorney and ran for Mississippi secretary of state in 2023. He said he wants to fight poverty and improve access to health care.
Pinkins and Wicker expressed sharp differences about abortion rights. Wicker has praised the Supreme Court for overturning its 1973 ruling that legalized abortion nationwide, while Pinkins has criticized the court’s 2022 decision. Mississippi is among the states with limited abortion access.
“While the Biden administration continues pursuing its pro-abortion agenda, pro-life advocates will continue doing what we have always done: working through our legislative and legal systems to promote a culture of life,” Wicker said.
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Pinkins said that because it’s “impossible biologically” for him to become pregnant, “I am not qualified to tell a woman what to do with her body.”
“That is between her, her God and her doctor — and if she chooses, she allows me or a man to be a part of that decision-making process,” Pinkins said. “Whether you are a pro-life or a pro-choice woman, I support you — to make that pro-life choice for yourself and that pro-choice decision for yourself.”
Mississippi’s last Democrat in the U.S. Senate was John C. Stennis, whose final term ended in January 1989.
Republicans control all of Mississippi’s statewide offices, three of the state’s four U.S. House seats and a majority of state legislative seats.