JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A commission working on a new Mississippi flag has narrowed the choices to two designs.
One has a shield. The other has a magnolia blossom on a dark blue background.
Commissioners made the decision after five proposals were literally run up a flagpole Tuesday.
They wanted to see how the designs look fluttering in the wind — or hanging limply.
And, they said the flags look different on a pole than they do as drawings on a page.
In late June, Mississippi legislators voted to retire the last state flag to include the Confederate battle emblem, which is broadly condemned as racist.
One of five final designs for the new Mississippi state flag flutters in the breeze, outside the Old Capitol Museum in Jackson, Miss., Aug. 25, 2020, in Jackson, Miss. In late June, Mississippi legislators voted to retire the last state flag to include the Confederate battle emblem, which is broadly condemned as racist. All five were flown outside the museum for viewing. The Mississippi State Flag Commission narrowed their choices to two flags, of which this is one. They will reconvene in September to make their final choice. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis) 
One of five final designs for the new Mississippi state flag flutters in the breeze, outside the Old Capitol Museum in Jackson, Miss., Aug. 25, 2020, in Jackson, Miss. In late June, Mississippi legislators voted to retire the last state flag to include the Confederate battle emblem, which is broadly condemned as racist. All five were flown outside the museum for viewing. The Mississippi State Flag Commission narrowed their choices to two flags, of which this is one. They will reconvene in September to make their final choice. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
