[7] The Constitution of Mississippi, ratified in 1890, calls for a four-year term for the governor, elected via the two-round system since a 2020 referendum.

Prior to this, the governor was elected by an electoral college composed of the districts represented in the Mississippi House of Representatives, with a contingent election held in the House in the event no candidate received a majority of district electors.

Mississippi Territory was organized on April 7, 1798, from land ceded to the federal government by Georgia.

[33] It seceded from the Union on January 9, 1861,[34] and was a founding member of the Confederate States of America on February 4, 1861.

[35] During the Reconstruction era following the end of the American Civil War, Mississippi was part of the Fourth Military District, which exerted some control over governor appointments and elections.