CNN Projection: Mississippi voters approve a new state flag without Confederate emblem

Mississippi’s new state flag will feature the magnolia flower after the state in a historic move this summer parted with its decades-old banner that included a Confederate battle emblem. 

Sixty-eight percent of voters approved the “In God We Trust” magnolia design as the new state flag, while 32% voted against it, according to CNN projections.

The state Legislature will now have to enact into law the new design as Mississippi’s official state flag during its next regular session in 2021.

The flag features a white magnolia blossom on a dark blue backdrop, with red bands and gold stripes — fitting for the Southern state whose nickname is the Magnolia State, whose state flower is the magnolia and whose state tree is the magnolia tree.  

The flower is surrounded by 20 stars, signifying Mississippi’s status at the 20th state in the union, and a gold five-point star to reflect Mississippi’s indigenous Native American tribes.

Mississippi was the last state in the country whose flag, which was adopted in 1894, included the Confederate emblem.

Advocates for changing the flag had argued the Confederate insignia was a reminder of America’s war to uphold slavery and a painful symbol for Black Americans. They also argued the 1894 flag hampered the state’s economic growth.