Following the completion of her undergraduate education, Toney attended Tulane University Law School, where she received her Juris Doctor.

[7] In 2004, Toney became the first woman, first African American, and youngest person to serve as mayor of Greenville[8] defeating Democratic incumbent mayor Paul Artman Jr. in the primary[9] and then independent DeWitt "Buddy" Tucker with 4,393 votes compared to 393 for Tucker in the December 8, 2003 general election.

[14] She was defeated by Bennie Thompson in the March 2012 Democratic primary for Mississippi's 2nd congressional district seat.

[15] In 2009, Toney was nominated by then-EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson to serve as chairwoman of the EPA's Local Government Advisory Committee.

In 2019, Toney authored an op-ed for The New York Times where she argued that the need to combat climate change and protect the environment is a racial justice issue.