Harrison: Is Hosemann’s Legislature performance based on perception or reality?

A perception exists that Republican Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann is often outflanked and defeated in policy disputes at the Mississippi Capitol.

But is that perception a reality? And will it matter should Hosemann, who cannot seek a third consecutive term as the Senate’s presiding officer, opt to run for governor in 2027?

In 2002 Gov. Ronnie Musgrove’s vetoes of dozens of bills funding state government were summarily overridden by the Mississippi Legislature. It was a striking defeat for Musgrove within the ornate House and Senate chambers of the Mississippi Capitol.

“You don’t want to lose too often in this building,” veteran state Rep. Billy McCoy, a Rienzi Democrat, said when asked at the time how the veto overrides might impact Musgrove’s political career.

On that fateful day, Musgrove lost – lost a lot. Were those defeats the reason that Musgrove would lose in his reelection bid to Republican Haley Barbour the following year?

Those veto overrides were not the only reason for his defeat. But it is reasonable to assume that they were part of a narrative – a negative narrative for the incumbent governor.

Events that have fueled a perception

A few weeks ago on a day set aside for legislators to return to the Capitol if they wanted to try to override any of Gov. Tate Reeves’ last minute vetoes of the 2026 session, the perception did not look too good for Hosemann.

As it turned out, Hosemann called the Senate back but would not allow his chamber to vote on the main bill that many believed legislators were returning to Jackson to take up. The ill-fated bill would have given the Legislature a modicum of oversight of federal rural healthcare funds that the governor had commandeered.

After Hosemann refused to allow a vote to override the veto of that bill, angry Senate Democrats refused to help his efforts to override other bills vetoed by the governor.

In other words, Hosemann called the senators back to the Capitol for a day where they accomplished nothing. It was not a good look for the lieutenant governor and arguably fueled that negative perception.

That perception also was enhanced in the 2025 session when Hosemann’s attempt to limit the efforts of House Speaker Jason White and the governor to phase out the income tax (roughly one-third of state general fund revenue) was unsuccessful. And it did not help that perception when a typo in the bill the Senate sent to the House appeared to enhance the probability that the income tax would be phased out.

And let’s be honest. Hosemann’s perception was not aided by a health scare when he passed out momentarily while presiding over the Senate. Hosemann, an avid runner, said medical providers attributed the episode to dehydration.

Hosemann has victories that counter the perception

It is fair to say Hosemann is dealing with some perception issues. But sometimes perception is not reality.

It also is fair to say Hosemann has had his share of legislative victories – and on some of the most high-profile issues facing the state.

Despite the powerful tag teaming of the governor and the speaker, thus far Hosemann has blocked the enactment of a widespread voucher program that would send public funds to private schools. While vouchers are viewed as popular with some Republican primary participants, in a crowded field Hosemann’s position on the combustible issue might be supported by enough voters to boost his chances should he run for governor.

And while many will not admit it, Hosemann also won on his effort to block the rewrite of the Mississippi Adequate Education Program. The MAEP formula provided funding for the basic needs of the local school districts.

Again the powerful duo of White and Reeves were working against Hosemann. They wanted to scrap the program. Many Republicans had long opposed the Adequate Education Program because they said it provided too much money to the local school districts.

But Hosemann prevailed on his position that any new program should include an objective formula to determine how much money the school districts would receive. In the end, the new formula that legislators adopted in 2024, called the Mississippi Student Funding Formula, is much like the old formula, but White and Reeves can at least say they got rid of the name, “Adequate Education Program.”

But much more than half of the money going to the schools still is determined by the objective formula just as it was under the MAEP.

That was a huge victory for public schools provided by Hosemann’s dogged persistence.

Should he run for governor, the trick for Hosemann will be whether he can shape the way voters perceive him.

To boost that perception, he probably doesn’t need to lose many more legislative battles in the Mississippi Capitol during his final days as lieutenant governor.

This column was produced by Mississippi Today, a nonprofit news organization that covers state government, public policy, politics and culture. Bobby Harrison is the editor of Mississippi Today Ideas.