39 Facts About Delbert Hosemann

Delbert Hosemann enlisted in the United States Army Reserve in 1969, serving for eight years.

Delbert Hosemann first ran for office in 1981 in a special election for Mississippi's 4th congressional district but failed to secure the Republican nomination.

Delbert Hosemann later became the party's nominee for the district in 1998 but lost in the general election.

Delbert Hosemann was elected Secretary of State in 2007, becoming the first Republican to hold the position since Reconstruction.

Delbert Hosemann was born on June 30,1947, in Vicksburg in western Mississippi.

Delbert Hosemann was the oldest of three children, having two sisters.

Delbert Hosemann's heritage is Catholic-Austrian on his father's side and Irish on his mother's side.

Delbert Hosemann's father, C Delbert Hosemann, was a tax lawyer in Vicksburg and a Lions Club governor.

Delbert Hosemann graduated from the St Aloysius High School in Vicksburg.

Delbert Hosemann received his Bachelor of Business Administration degree in 1969 from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana.

Delbert Hosemann worked briefly in Dayton, Ohio, to earn money for law school.

In 1973, he joined the law firm Magruder, Montgomery, Brocato and Delbert Hosemann, working in the mergers and acquisitions practice.

Delbert Hosemann considered running in the 1982 election for the 4th district after losing in the special.

Delbert Hosemann was the Republican candidate for election to Mississippi's 4th congressional district in 1998.

Delbert Hosemann came first in the primary and later won in the runoff election despite criticisms of being a "closet liberal" for donating to Democratic Mississippi governor Ray Mabus in 1987.

Delbert Hosemann had support from the National Rifle Association and the National Right to Life Committee.

Delbert Hosemann was considered a strong candidate: he had a financial advantage, early advertising, and running during the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal.

Delbert Hosemann was considered a potential candidate for the attorney general in the 2003 elections.

Delbert Hosemann eventually ran in the Republican primary against two other candidates.

Delbert Hosemann dropped out of the race in March 2003 out of concerns of exhausting funds from party donors in a three-way race.

Delbert Hosemann campaigned on voter ID laws, better election administration, and fair management of public lands.

Delbert Hosemann became the first Republican Secretary of State for Mississippi since James Hill in 1878.

Delbert Hosemann announced his intent in February 2011, focusing on implementing Mississippi's voter ID law.

Delbert Hosemann easily won the Republican primary against a Gulfport city council member, who ran because of Hosemann's attempt to put harbor control under his office.

In February 2015, on Supertalk radio, Delbert Hosemann announced he would run for reelection in the 2015 Mississippi elections.

Delbert Hosemann ran unopposed in the Republican primary and was set to face Democrat Charles Graham.

Delbert Hosemann asserted that there was no voter fraud in the 2016 election.

In 2018, at the Neshoba County Fair, Delbert Hosemann announced he would not seek re-election for Secretary of State.

Delbert Hosemann announced his candidacy for Lieutenant Governor in the 2019 Mississippi elections.

Delbert Hosemann proposed gas tax increases and increasing legislative transparency.

Delbert Hosemann was sworn in to the office on January 14,2020.

Delbert Hosemann faced a primary challenge from far-right firebrand state senator Chris McDaniel who lambasted Hosemann as being too liberal; McDaniel was considered a leader of the far-right wing of the Mississippi GOP.

Delbert Hosemann angered conservative senators when he gave 13 committee chairmanships to Democratic state senators, a decision based on the fact the Senate has 52 members with 41 committees.

Delbert Hosemann advocated for ending the state income tax and reducing the state grocery tax for 2025 legislative priorities.

Delbert Hosemann married Lynn Delbert Hosemann in 1970, who he met at the University of Notre Dame; together they have three children.

Delbert Hosemann is a member of the National Rifle Association and Ducks Unlimited.

Delbert Hosemann has completed the New York City Marathon and Boston Marathon.

Delbert Hosemann tested positive again two years later during the opening days of the legislative session.

On February 19,2025, Delbert Hosemann collapsed while presiding over a session in the Mississippi State Senate from dehydration; he later recovered.