Rep. Bo Eaton wins MS election tiebreaker

A Mississippi House race has been won by a Democrat by drawing an extended straw, an official method to break a tie in a legislative election.

MS is one of 24 states that have laws declaring a tied legislative election to be decided by either drawing straws or flipping a coin, the National Conference of State Legislatures said, the Associated Press reported.

According to the NY Times, Democratic incumbent Blaine “Bo” Eaton and Republican challenger Mark Tullos are now tied for the spot with 4,589 votes each.

Despite the legality, both candidates aren’t pleased with the situation. Tullos filed an appeal to the tiebreaker, which was presided over Friday by Republican Gov. Phil Bryant.

By state law, the two are supposed to meet and, under the supervision of the state’s governor and secretary of state, determine the victor “by lot”.

Before the drawing, neither candidate was particularly excited.

Mr Tullos apparently left the room quickly and did not show emotion. The boxes were placed in a red cloth bag.

After Eaton requested that his mother be in the room to witness the drawing, Hosemann told him to draw first since his name was listed first on the ballot. Each will pull a box from a bag, and the candidate whose box contains a long green straw will be declared the victor.

But Friday afternoon’s drawing was more high-stakes than your run-of-the-mill game of chance; had Tullos won, Republicans would have gained a three-fifths supermajority in the Mississippi House – allowing them to pass revenue-related bills without Democratic votes.

Eaton, a farmer from Taylorsville, said the win was due to farmer’s luck, the NY Times reported. “I’m a farmer. I depend on the weather and the rain”.

“I would encourage the governor to call a special session and change the law, and i have always asked since the beginning for a new election”, said Eaton. “It’s wrong-philosophically, morally. It’s archaic, it’s medieval, and it’s wrong”. “And I still believe that today”. Should Tullos follow through with his threat, he’s likely to win, as the chamber is dominated by his fellow Republicans.