For all the talk about how Republicans are in control in Mississippi, one thing gets constantly overlooked: Democrats hold three of the four seats from the U.S. House of Representatives.

Now, with what looks like a primary victory for Joel Gill, our slate is complete. We have four Democrats who are ready to run in November, and we’re ready to give them everything we’ve got in support.

First District Congressman Travis Childers has shown during his first term that he will put the needs of his district before anything else. He’s not a career politician; he’s a true representative of North Mississippi.

Second District Congressman Bennie Thompson is the chairman of the important House Homeland Security Committee. He’s been a strong advocate for the Mississippi Delta and for the Magnolia State as a whole. Whoever his eventual opponent, they will have a hard time convincing Mississippians in the Second Congressional District that Bennie Thompson has not done a stellar job in Washington.

Fourth District Congressman Gene Taylor has always been a loud voice for the people of the Coast. During Hurricane Katrina, he was a leader in helping bring federal assistance to Mississippi to help with recovery efforts. We expect he’ll do the same now as we face another disaster on the coast with the BP Oil Spill, which Gov. Barbour and Lt. Gov. Bryant have completely mismanaged.

And finally, Pickens Mayor Joel Gill is a working-class man with working-class values. He understands the plight of small businesses, main streets and hard-working Mississippians. He is not afraid to tackle the far-right, out-of-touch record of Congressman Gregg Harper. We need a Congressman in the Third Congressional District who represents Mississippians first, not their political party or their own professional aspirations. Joel Gill can be that man.

We hope that you will help support the Mississippi Democratic Party as we support our incumbents and our Democratic challenger in these so very important Congressional elections. You can do so by contributing at:

http://www.mississippidemocrats.org/contribute/

Thanks for your hard work on behalf of Democratic candidates.

Democratically yours,

Chairman Jamie Franks