Mississippi’s old state flag and its new one differ in almost every way that matters. The old flag, flown from 1894 until 2020, carried the Confederate battle emblem in its upper-left canton beside three vertical bars of blue, white, and red. The new flag, adopted in 2021, shows a white magnolia blossom ringed by stars on a dark blue field, with the words “In God We Trust” beneath it and red and gold bars at each end. Mississippi was the last U.S. state to display the Confederate emblem on its flag, and the swap from one design to the other was driven by a two-week legislative push in June 2020.
What Each Flag Looks Like
The 1894 flag had three horizontal-running vertical bars of blue, white, and red. In the upper-left corner sat a square canton containing the Confederate battle flag: a red field crossed by a blue saltire studded with thirteen white stars. That canton is what made the flag controversial and what the 2020 law specifically forbade in any replacement.
The current flag centers on a white magnolia blossom on a dark blue field. The blossom is encircled by 20 five-pointed stars, representing Mississippi’s status as the 20th state admitted to the Union, plus one additional star honoring indigenous Native Americans. The phrase “In God We Trust” appears beneath the magnolia. Vertical bars of red and gold run along each end of the flag. The Commission to Redesign the Mississippi State Flag officially branded it the “In God We Trust Flag.”1Mississippi Department of Archives and History. State Flag Commission Picks New Magnolia Flag for November Ballot
Where the Old Flag Came From
The Mississippi Legislature approved the 1894 design on the recommendation of Governor John M. Stone. Historians have identified State Senator Edward N. Scudder as the designer.2Daily Journal. Senator Calls for Return of Old Mississippi Flag A newspaper account in the February 23, 1894 edition of the Pascagoula Democrat-Star noted only that “the last Legislature provided for a state flag and coat-of-arms.”3Mississippi History Now. The History of Mississippi’s State Flag
Historians have attributed the Confederate emblem’s placement to a desire to unify white political factions during a period of racial and political tension in the state. One account described it as “a universal celebration of White sacrifice” at a time when aging Confederate veterans were dying and the cause risked fading from public life.3Mississippi History Now. The History of Mississippi’s State Flag
The flag flew for more than a century. In 2001, after a Mississippi Supreme Court ruling found the 1894 statute had never been carried into the 1906 Code and the state technically had no official flag, voters were asked to choose between formally adopting the old design or switching to one with a circle of white stars in place of the Confederate emblem. The old flag won 494,323 to 273,359, roughly 64% to 36%.4US Election Atlas. 2001 Mississippi Flag Special Election Results That lopsided result froze the issue for nearly two decades.
Why the Flag Changed in 2020
The killing of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, sparked nationwide protests and reopened a debate many Mississippi legislators had considered closed. Pressure built quickly from several directions, but the decisive push came from college athletics.
On June 18, 2020, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey announced that the conference would consider barring championship events from Mississippi unless the flag changed.5ESPN. SEC Commissioner Threatens No SEC Championships in Mississippi Until State Flag Changes The next day, the NCAA prohibited all postseason events in the state until the Confederate symbol was “permanently removed.”6Clarion-Ledger. NCAA, SEC Take Stand Against State Flag The presidents and chancellors of Mississippi’s eight public universities issued a joint statement acknowledging that keeping the flag meant the state would “potentially forego the millions of dollars in economic impact that NCAA postseason events bring.”7Whole Hog Sports. NCAA: Mississippi Gets No Postseason Events Until Flag Changes Mississippi State and Ole Miss regularly hosted early-round NCAA baseball and softball games, and those events were now off the table.
Individual athletes added their names. Mississippi State running back Kylin Hill said on June 22 that he would not play for the Bulldogs unless the flag changed. Former Ole Miss guard Blake Hinson cited the flag as a factor in his transfer. Within days, 46 coaches and administrators from the state’s universities were lobbying legislators directly.8ESPN. Mississippi Lawmakers Vote To Remove Confederate Emblem From State Flag
Public opinion moved with the pressure. A poll conducted for the Mississippi Economic Council by the Republican firm the Tarrance Group found 55% of voters now favored a change, a reversal from 18 months earlier when 54% had opposed one. When voters were asked about a design featuring “In God We Trust,” support rose to 72%.9Clarion-Ledger. Mississippi State Flag Poll: Majority of Voters Support Change
On Sunday, June 28, 2020, a bipartisan coalition passed House Bill 1796. The House voted 91–23; the Senate 37–14.10BBC. Mississippi Flag: Confederate Symbol Removed After 126 Years Governor Tate Reeves signed the bill on June 30, immediately stripping the 1894 flag of official status.11Mississippi Department of Archives and History. Retirement of Former Mississippi State Flag The law required the old flag to come down within fifteen days and set up a commission to design a replacement. It imposed just two rules on the new design: no Confederate imagery, and the words “In God We Trust” must appear.12Mississippi Legislature. House Bill 1796
How the New Flag Was Chosen
The nine-member commission, chaired by retired Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Reuben Anderson, received nearly 3,000 design submissions. The group winnowed them to 147, then 10, then 5, and finally picked the magnolia design by an 8–1 vote.13WAPT. Magnolia or Shield for New Mississippi Flag: Flag Commission Votes
The final flag was a composite of work by several Mississippi residents. Rocky Vaughan, a graphic designer from Ackerman, had been sketching magnolia-based flags for years. Sue Anna Joe, a Greenwood native living in San Francisco, drew the magnolia blossom at the center.14WLBT. New Magnolia Flag Designers Share Background and Concept Oxford graphic designer Kara Giles refined the lettering, the spacing of the stars, and the magnolia’s stamen.15Clarion-Ledger. Meet Some Designers Behind New Mississippi Magnolia State Flag
On November 3, 2020, voters ratified the design 927,942 to 344,621, roughly 73% to 27%.16New York Times. Results: Mississippi Statewide Measure 3 The 73% approval was a sharp reversal from 2001, when about two-thirds had voted to keep the Confederate-emblem flag. Governor Reeves signed House Bill No. 1 into law on January 11, 2021, at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson, and a flag-raising ceremony followed on the State Capitol grounds. House Speaker Philip Gunn called the moment a decision to “stand on the right side of history.”17Mississippi Department of Archives and History. Official Adoption and Flag-Raising Ceremony
Could the Old Flag Come Back?
After the 2020 vote, some residents began collecting signatures to put the question of re-adopting the 1894 flag on a future ballot. State Senators Kathy Chism of New Albany and Chris McDaniel of Ellisville, both of whom had voted against HB 1796, backed the effort.18Mississippi Free Press. Senator Calls for Return of Old Mississippi Flag
That path closed on May 14, 2021, when the Mississippi Supreme Court struck down the state’s entire ballot-initiative process in a 6–3 ruling. The state constitution required initiative petitions to gather signatures equally from five congressional districts, but Mississippi had only four districts after the 2000 Census. Writing for the majority, Justice Josiah Coleman held the provision was “unworkable and inoperative.”19Mississippi Today. Mississippi Supreme Court Overturns Medical Marijuana Initiative 65 The pending petition to reinstate the old flag was voided along with every other active initiative.20Mississippi Free Press. Voters Ask Supreme Court for Initiative 65 Rehearing
As of 2024, the legislature had failed for three consecutive years to restore a workable initiative system.21Bolts Magazine. Mississippi Keeps Door Shut on Ballot Initiatives Senator Chism has continued to speak publicly in favor of the old flag — at the Belmont Political Rally in Tishomingo County on June 3, 2023, she said “a lot of our people fought and died under that flag”2Daily Journal. Senator Calls for Return of Old Mississippi Flag — but no bill to restore the 1894 design has advanced. The old flag now sits in the collections of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History.11Mississippi Department of Archives and History. Retirement of Former Mississippi State Flag