Michael Guest (politician)
American attorney and politician (born 1970)
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Michael Patrick Guest (born February 4, 1970) is an American attorney and Republican politician. He has represented Mississippi's 3rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives since 2019. He became the ranking member of the United States House Committee on Ethics upon the August 2022 death of Jackie Walorski, and he became its chair in the 118th Congress after Republicans won a House majority that November.
Michael Guest | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2019 | |
| Chair of the House Ethics Committee | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Susan Wild |
| Ranking Member of the House Ethics Committee | |
Acting | |
| In office August 19, 2022 – January 3, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Jackie Walorski |
| Succeeded by | Susan Wild |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Mississippi's 3rd district | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Gregg Harper |
| District Attorney of Rankin County and Madison County | |
| In office 2008–2019 | |
| Preceded by | David Clark |
| Succeeded by | John Bramlett |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Michael Patrick Guest February 4, 1970 Woodbury, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse | Haley Kennedy |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Mississippi State University (BS) University of Mississippi (JD) |
| Website | House website Campaign website |
Early life and education
Michael Patrick Guest[1] was born on February 4, 1970.[2] He graduated from Mississippi State University with a bachelor's degree in accounting and the University of Mississippi School of Law with a Juris Doctor. He served as the Assistant District Attorney for Madison and Rankin counties from 1994 to 2008, and became District Attorney in 2008.[3] Guest and his family are members of Brandon Baptist Church, where he serves as a deacon and Sunday school teacher.[4]
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
2018
Guest ran for the United States House of Representatives in Mississippi's 3rd congressional district to succeed Gregg Harper, who chose not to seek reelection.[5] In the six-way June Republican primary election, Guest received the most votes (45%), with Whit Hughes coming in second with 22%.[6] Because no candidate received 50% of the vote, Guest and Hughes faced each other in a primary runoff election,[7] which Guest won.[6] Guest defeated State Representative Michael Evans, the Democratic nominee, in the general election.[8]
Guest campaigned as a strong supporter of President Donald Trump.[6]
2020
Guest was reelected in 2020 with 64.7% of the vote, defeating Democrat Dort Benford.[9]
2022
Guest was reelected in 2022.
Tenure
Guest voted against creating the January 6th Committee.[10][11]
In November 2021, Business Insider reported that Guest had violated the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act of 2012, a federal transparency and conflict-of-interest law, by failing to properly disclose trades in BP and ExxonMobil stock by his wife's family trust; as a result, Guest paid a $200 fine.[12]
In June 2022, after a leaked decision by the Supreme Court of the United States to revoke the right to abortion in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, Guest wrote to the Department of Homeland Security to demand action in the wake of attacks by Jane's Revenge, which Guest called an "anarchist extremist group" that targets crisis pregnancy centers and other anti-abortion organizations.[13]
In August 2022, Guest was named ranking member of the House Ethics Committee upon the death of former ranking member Jackie Walorski.[14]
Guest voted to support Israel following the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.[15][16]
He also proposed the resolution that expelled George Santos from Congress.[17]
In 2024, Guest voted against the $60 billion military aid package for Ukraine; The Washington Post reported that some of the funding would have supported defense jobs in his constituency.[18]
Committee assignments
For the 119th Congress:[19]
Caucus memberships
Source:[20]
- Army Caucus
- Border Security Caucus
- Chicken Caucus
- Fire Services Caucus
- Freshman Working Group on Addiction
- Law Enforcement Caucus
- National Guard and Reserve Caucus
- Prayer Caucus
- Pro-Life Caucus
- Republican Study Committee[21]
- Rice Caucus
- Sportsman Caucus
- Steel Caucus
- Suburban Caucus
- Unmanned Systems Caucus
Electoral history
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Michael Guest | 29,157 | 44.8 | |
| Republican | Whit Hughes | 14,464 | 22.2 | |
| Republican | Perry Parker | 10,562 | 16.2 | |
| Republican | Sally Doty | 6,608 | 10.2 | |
| Republican | Morgan Dunn | 3,820 | 5.9 | |
| Republican | Katherine Tate | 416 | 0.6 | |
| Total votes | 65,027 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Michael Guest | 31,121 | 65.1 | |
| Republican | Whit Hughes | 16,691 | 34.9 | |
| Total votes | 47,812 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Michael Guest | 160,284 | 62.3 | |
| Democratic | Michael Evans | 94,461 | 36.7 | |
| Reform | Matthew Holland | 2,526 | 1.0 | |
| Total votes | 257,271 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Michael Guest (incumbent) | 67,269 | 89.8 | |
| Republican | James Tulp | 7,618 | 10.2 | |
| Total votes | 74,887 | 100.0% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Michael Guest (incumbent) | 221,064 | 64.7 | |
| Democratic | Dorothy "Dot" Benford | 120,782 | 35.3 | |
| Total votes | 341,846 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Michael Guest (incumbent) | 132,481 | 70.7 | |
| Democratic | Shuwaski Young | 54,803 | 29.3 | |
| Total votes | 187,284 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Michael Guest (incumbent) | 265,159 | 100.0 | |
| Total votes | 265,159 | 100.0 | ||
| Republican hold | ||||