Mississippi's seventy-ninth state house district is represented by Republican Representative Mark Tullos.

Mississippi state representatives represent an average of 24,322 residents. After the 2000 Census, each member represented 23,317 residents.

About the office

Members of the Mississippi House of Representatives serve four-year terms and are not subject to term limits. Mississippi legislators assume office the first day of the regular session of the year following election. The Constitution requires the Legislature to convene yearly on the Tuesday after the first Monday in January.

Qualifications

In order to run for the Mississippi House of Representatives, a candidate must:

• Be 21 years of age or older.
• Be a qualified elector and resident of the State of Mississippi for four years.
• Be a resident of the county or district a candidate plans to represent for two years.
• If running as a Republican or Democrat, pay a $15 filing fee to the State Executive Committee of the party with which the candidate is affiliated.
• If running as an independent, submit 50 signatures to the Circuit Clerk or the Secretary of State.

Salaries

Vacancies

If there is a vacancy in the house, a special election is required to fill the vacant seat. The Governor must call for an election no later than 30 days after the vacancy happened. After the governor sets the election date, the counties conducting the election must be given at least 40 days notice before the election. All qualifying deadlines are 30 days before the election.

No special election is held if the vacancy happens after June 1st in an election year.

Elections

2019

Elections for the Mississippi House of Representatives took place in 2019. The primary was on August 6, 2019, the primary runoff was on August 27, and the general election was on November 5. The filing deadline for candidates was March 1, 2019.

No Democratic candidates ran in the primary.

2015

Elections for the Mississippi House of Representatives took place in 2015. A primary election was held on August 4, 2015. The general election took place on November 3, 2015. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was February 27, 2015. Incumbent Blaine Eaton was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Mark K. Tullos defeated Gary Blakeney in the Republican primary. Tullos faced Eaton in the general election, but the race ended in a tie. Eaton and Tullos drew straws on November 20 to break the tie, which Eaton won. Tullos filed a challenge to the state House after Eaton won. On January 20, 2016, a special House committee concluded that five votes in the election for District 79 should not have counted. The House committee voted 4-1 to seat Tullos. The House voted 67-49 to unseat Eaton and to move Tullos into the seat.

Mississippi House of Representatives, District 79 General Election, 2015

Mississippi House of Representatives, District 79 Republican Primary, 2015

2011

Elections for the office of Mississippi House of Representatives consisted of a primary election on August 2, 2011 and a general election on November 8, 2011. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 1, 2011. Incumbent Blaine Eaton, II (D) defeated Ron Swindall (R) in the general election. Eaton defeated Frankie Chisholm in the Democratic primary. Swindall was unopposed in the Republican primary.

Mississippi House of Representatives, District 79 General Election, 2011

Mississippi House of Representatives District 79 Democratic Primary, 2011

Campaign contributions

From 2003 to 2011, candidates for Mississippi House of Representatives District 79 raised a total of $210,773. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $23,419 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money.

Campaign contributions, Mississippi House of Representatives District 79