Leslie Burl-McLemore, the first Black person to ever vote in DeSoto County, says early voting in the state should change

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Scott Colom won the Mississippi U.S. Senate seat, becoming the first Black person to win it since Reconstruction.

“Witnessing yesterday’s election is really surreal,” that’s how Leslie Burl-McLemore described Colom’s win.

Burl-McLemore was the first Black person to ever vote in DeSoto County.

Colom’s race was called Wednesday, more than a week after Mississippians cast their ballots. Some ballots were still being counted in DeSoto County Wednesday when the race was called.

The lack of early voting in the state is the cause.

Burl-McLemore reflected on Colom’s win.

McLemore said that although he started in rural Mississippi paving the way for people like Colom in 1962, it is time to look to the future of voting in Mississippi.

“This is historic; it is really going to change the face of Mississippi politics, quite frankly,” McLemore said.

McLemore was a 21-year-old student at Rust College when he, his brother, and a friend traveled to the DeSoto County Courthouse to register to vote. He then was able to be the first black person to vote in the county.

“That has to change now. There have been efforts by members of the state legislature to change that, but they haven’t been successful. But I think with the election of Scott Colom, there is going to be a greater emphasis on changing that,” he said.

State lawmakers created early voting legislation a couple of times, but it stalled in the House. It may now have bipartisan support.

“I think Republicans are starting to wake up and seeing that this absentee voting, this early voting here in Mississippi is a thing. It’s something they can and should do,” said Mike Hurst, chairman of the Mississippi Republican Party.

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