Mississippi voters will decide in November if the state will adopt the new flag chosen by the Commission to Redesign the Mississippi State Flag, NBC News reports.
The commission voted 8 to 1 Wednesday to choose “The New Magnolia” design over “The Great River Flag,” according to NBC News. The state commission also decided to change the named of the chosen design, opting to change the name from the “The New Magnolia” flag to “The In God We Trust” flag Wednesday. The design was among 5 initial finalists chosen by the commission after it reviewed nearly 3,000 designs submitted by the public, per WJTV.
BREAKING: Mississippi Flag commission selects the ‘magnolia flag’ as the final state flag design. It will be on the ballot November 3rd to be voted on by the public. @16WAPTNews pic.twitter.com/8dNEubrbQS
— Troy Johnson (@Troy_Johnson) September 2, 2020
In June, state legislators voted to remove the confederate emblem from the state flag, and created the commission to oversee the redesign, reported NBC.
Watch Live: Mississippi flag commission to select final design on September 2 https://t.co/N5I9Uvyj0Z
— WREG News Channel 3 (@3onyourside) September 2, 2020
“The New Magnolia” flag was designed by Rocky Vaughan and features a white magnolia blossom in the center of the flag, NBC News reports. The Mississippi Department of Archives and History called the magnolia blossom “a symbol long-used to represent our state and the hospitality of our citizens.” (RELATED: Mississippi Working On Legislation To Remove Confederate Emblem From State Flag)
If voters reject the selected new design, the state commission will try again for a new flag that would be presented to the legislature during the 2021 session.