(AP) — Mississippi is inaugurating seven of its eight statewide elected officials during a ceremony Thursday at the state Capitol.
The new governor, Tate Reeves, will be sworn in Tuesday.
The statewide officials were elected in November, and all are Republican. Some are changing offices.
Delbert Hosemann has been secretary of state for three terms, and he is succeeding Reeves as lieutenant governor.
Lynn Fitch has been treasurer for two terms, and she is becoming attorney general. She will be the first woman to serve as Mississippi’s top legal officer. She will also be the first Republican in that job as she succeeds four-term Attorney General Jim Hood, a Democrat who ran unsuccessfully for governor last year.
The new secretary of state is Michael Watson, who served three terms in the state Senate.
The new treasurer is David McRae, who worked as a manger of his family’s investments.
Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney is being sworn in for a fourth term.
Auditor Shad White and Agriculture Commissioner Andy Gipson were both appointed to office by Republican Gov. Phil Bryant during the last four-year term.