With the incoming retirement of Mississippi Senate Pro Tempore Dean Kirby, one of the state’s House members is looking to cross the capitol hall and earn Kirby’s seat during next year’s election cycle.
Republican Rep. Lee Yancey announced he will not be seeking statewide office and instead will run in 2027 for the Senate District 30 seat currently held by Kirby, also a Republican. Yancey had previously been linked to a potential run for insurance commissioner or secretary of state, but in late April, he announced on social media his bid for state Senate.
On May 2, Yancey recognized Kirby’s decades of service and reiterated his campaign when speaking to a Rankin County political breakfast. Yancey and Kirby’s seats overlap and serve a significant part of Rankin County, including Brandon and Pearl.
“[Kirby] is someone I have looked up to for many, many years. He served faithfully with integrity, wisdom, and compassion,” Yancey said. “When he announced…he would not be seeking reelection, it was something that I had been praying about on what God would have me do next, and I announced that I would be seeking the Senate District 30 seat next year.”
Kirby, 79, was first elected to the Senate in 1992. In 2020, he was named the chamber’s pro tempore – the Senate’s top-ranking member who presides in the lieutenant governor’s absence. This past session, he also served as chair of the Senate Rules Committee and vice chair of the Senate Interstate and Federal Cooperation Committee.
Before taking office, Kirby chaired the Rankin County Republican Executive Committee. He ran an insurance agency until he retired from that post in 2016.
Yancey, 57, served in the Senate from 2008 until 2012, when he unsuccessfully ran for state treasurer. He was elected to the lower chamber in 2019 to serve House District 74, and this past session, he chaired the House Business and Commerce Committee.
An investment advisor by trade, Yancey said his experience in the Senate would make for a seamless transition, if elected.
“I think because of my relationships on both sides of the legislature and having served in the Senate before, it’s where I can help Rankin County the most,” Yancey said.
Senate District 30 has proved to be a Republican stronghold with Kirby drawing no challengers on either side during the past five cycles.
