McLendon announces re-election bid
Photo: State Sen. Michael McLendon (R-Hernando). (Courtesy photo)
June 2, 2025 – One of the state lawmakers involved in the recent redistricting map dispute spurred by the settlement of a federal lawsuit says he’s running for reelection. He’s apparently aware there will be a primary challenger running against him and we may learn shortly who that challenger may be.
State Sen. Michael McLendon (R-Hernando) Monday announced his candidacy for reelection in the newly drawn Senate District 1, reaffirming a commitment to defending conservative values, God-given rights, and our attractive neighborhoods.
One the more vocal opponents of how districts were redrawn during the regular legislative session, McLendon fought to keep Hernando together in the redistricting that satisfied a federal court ruling.
The first district map that included a minority-majority district in DeSoto County to come out of the legislature separated the city into different Senate districts.
Eventually a new map drawn by state election commissioners kept Hernando together and satisfied the three-judge federal panel and the Mississippi NAACP, which started the lawsuit in 2022.
McLendon believes his strong opposition to what came out of the legislature this spring has rankled some GOP leaders who now will support a primary opponent.
“From Day One, I’ve fought to protect our conservative values, defend our county, and support our award-winning school district and heroic first responders,” McLendon said. “Unfortunately, some big developers and political insiders are upset that I’ve stood against bad developments and redistricting schemes. Now, believe it or not, they’ve recruited a developer to run against me.”
The Hernando Republican is a former alderman before he defeated Chris Massey for the District 1 seat in the 2019 election. McLendon was unopposed in the 2023 election.
McLendon cites several, what he termed, “consequential conservative” victories while in Jackson. He was principal author and helped pass Senate Bill 2113, which banned Critical Race Theory in Mississippi classrooms and stopped the indoctrination of schoolchildren. He helped deliver the largest teacher pay raise in state history, cut taxes, and brought home more than $183 million in investment for DeSoto County.
McLendon said he fought to protect the state auditor’s budget—an agency critical to rooting out government corruption—despite opposition from career politicians. McLendon also cited his work against crime, against DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion), and support to protect the PERS retirement system for teachers, first responders and public employees.
McLendon said he is aware that his strong opposition to the initial maps that he said would hand his district over to liberal Democrats also set him up against some members of his own party.
“I didn’t go to the marble halls of Jackson to make friends or money—I went there to fight for you. And apparently, that upset some folks,” McLendon said.
We expect to officially learn later in the week who the opponent McLendon believes will be running against him. The qualifying period began Monday and will continue through June 9. The party’s state executive committee has until June 13 to submit the names of qualified candidates to the state.
The special primary election day is Aug. 5 and any runoff elections will take place on Sept. 2. Nov. 4 is the general election day.
The general election winner will essentially be serving out two years of a four-year term and would need to run for re-election again in 2027 if desiring to keep the seat for another four years.
Special elections are also being required in Senate Districts 2, 11, and 19.
McLendon’s campaign has already released a video advertisement which is available here: https://youtu.be/R0CHeSLbvsY?si=iMBPY89OHy6mnhRI
