BILOXI, Miss. _ The commission to select a new Mississippi state flag has chosen one design that will go before voters on the Nov. 3 ballot.
The nine-person panel has chosen, by an 8-1 vote, the "New Magnolia" flag that features the flower at its center with a blue background and red and gold bars down its sides. Graphic designer Rocky Vaughn of Ackerman is largely responsible for its design.
The magnolia on the flag was created by Greenwood native Sue Anna Joe, who now resides in San Francisco.
Slight alterations were made to the design Wednesday, including the solidifying of the gold stamen and making the "In God We Trust" more bold.
The "Great River Flag" that featured a red-and-white shield and a blue background finished second in the selection process. The flag was designed by Micah Whitson, an Ole Miss graduate who now lives in Boston.
The flag features the words "In God We Trust" as part of guidelines set by the state Legislature.
The final design was chosen after the committee originally received over 3,000 submissions earlier in the summer.
If voters approve the design by more than 50% of the vote, it will officially become the state's new flag.
If voters reject the new flag, the commission will have to go back to work designing a new banner.
The Legislature approved a bill earlier this year that took down the former state flag that featured the Confederate emblem.
"I want to thank our commissioners for their hard work," Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann said in a recorded address to the group. "I don't think on Jan. 1, 2020, anyone involved thought they'd be giving Mississippi a flag it can be proud of for decades and centuries. You did a great job of displaying the flag, getting votes and taking public opinion. We're going to be proud when your state flag is adopted."
Oxford Mayor Robyn Tannehill proposed delaying the vote and taking a poll of Mississippians to judge support for both flags, but the commission was informed that Sept. 2 was a hard deadline to get the flag on the November ballot.
