Supervisors begin redistricting process after Census

The process of redistricting began Monday and some residents may soon find themselves living in new supervisor districts without having moved.

The Neshoba County Board of Supervisors spent Monday afternoon going over maps and census data as they began the redistricting process.

“The board was going off the census information and looking at different options for redistricting,” said Jeff Mayo, county administrator. “They are looking at where can we move people around to get the deviation where it needs to be. There are going to be some changes.”

Neshoba County’s population after the 2020 Census was 29,087. Divided by five districts, the ideal population per district would be 5,237. Anything less or more is referred to as a deviation.

The populations in District 1 and District 5 have changed since the 2010 census. District 1 has 6,610 people or an increase of 409 people from the 2010 count. District 5 has 5,237 people or 543 less than the 2010 census. Districts 2, 3 and 4 fall close to the ideal number.

This is where it gets tricky. District 1 is a minority district with a Native American majority. District 5 is the minority district with an African American majority. When shifting population blocks around to even up the numbers, supervisors must maintain those majorities. The Neshoba County racial makeup is 56.8% white, 21.8% African American and 17.1% Native American.

Redistricting happens every 10 years on state and local levels after the U.S. Census Bureau data comes out. States, counties and cities are divided into districts or wards with near equal population numbers. In the years between censuses, populations often shift. Racial makeup can change. Thus, political lines must be reapportioned to make them as near equal as possible. Maintaining the racial majorities in a district is also a factor to ensure equal representation.