After short stint, McGee’s ready to move from appointed to elected HCEC position

The race for Election Commissioner District #2 (Hinds County) has a total of five candidates whom will be on the ballot for the upcoming election November 7, 2023. According to the Mississippi Secretary of State’s Office, the five candidates are RaToya Gilmer McGee, Richard Cook, Celestial Gordon Griffin, and Bobbie McClure.

McGee was appointed in January 2023 as Election Commissioner District #2 for Hinds County to serve out the term of Election Commissioner Toni Johnson, who pled guilty in an election grant embezzlement case. 

McGee was appointed by unanimous vote of the Hinds County Board of Supervisors and now she has thrown her hat in the race to fill the position for the new term. McGee’s name will appear on the November 7, 2023, ballot along with all others who have qualified.

At the time of McGee’s appointment in January 2023 then Hinds County Board Supervisor David Archie said, “The thing really moved me was the fact that she wanted to bring integrity to the Hinds County Election Commissioner’s Office.”

In the role of Election Commissioner, McGee has been responsible for the election operations in 110 voting precincts throughout Hinds County District #2, educating voters and voter roll maintenance. 

A native of Edwards, Mississippi, McGee presents an outstanding resume that includes graduations from Raymond High School (2006), Tougaloo College (2010), University of Mississippi Law School (2013), and admission to the Mississippi Bar (2013).

McGee then joined the law office of Precious Martin, Sr.  & Associates, PLLC, gaining experience under the celebrated attorney, affectionately known simply as Precious by citizens of Hinds County and throughout the state. Working with Precious, McGee demonstrated her passion for working on behalf of the underepresented, advocating for her clients in the areas of personal injury, medical malpractice, and expungements. McGee has also planned and conducted expungement clinics statewide.

McGee serves as a volunteer attorney for the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers’ Project (MVLP) and is the Chair for MVLP’s Board of Directors. She was awarded a Certificate of Appreciation on behalf of the Mississippi Commission for Volunteer Services in recognition and appreciation of her outstanding volunteer service to Mississippians.

Regarding the right to vote, McGee explains: “I relied on my experiences as a child accompanying my grandmother Mrs. Priscilla Gilmer and my great Auntee Ms. Julia Bingham to the polls to vote. My grandmother didn’t know how to drive but Auntee did, and she would pile my family and neighbors into her car and take all of us to the polls. Getting a ride to the polls was a big deal because every family in Edwards didn’t have a car. Back then, it was an all-day hustle to make sure everybody had a ride to the polls. Voting day when I was a child was like having a family reunion because you got to see people from other churches and classmates accompanying their parents to the polling place. Having been rooted in the experience of exercising the right to vote at a young age by watching my grandmother, I was exposed to the process. Having a strong minority female as an example only solidified my foundation to work as an attorney to ensure that the belief in the right to vote is protected as a central function of democracy. Therefore, the importance of voting was instilled in me from childhood.” 

Currently, McGee is a managing partner with Gilmer & Green Legal Group, PLLC. She continues to give back to the community by helping everyday people navigate the legal system.

McGee resides in Edwards, Mississippi with her husband Levorn McGee Jr. and their daughter Skylar.