“Socialists are taking over the Democratic Party” has become an all too familiar argument in Mississippi politics.

But Mississippi Republicans are not running against national DSA Democrats.

They are running against Mississippi Democratic candidates whose actual positions can look very different from those of the national figures being invoked.

The distinction is one that the GOP has hoped voters will not notice, despite the fact that it matters.

For them, national political labels are much easier to campaign against than the actual positions of the candidates on the ballot.

Mississippi’s Third Congressional District may be one of the clearest examples.

In the Third District, Republican Congressman Michael Guest is running against Democratic nominee Michael A. Chiaradio.

When Guest was asked about Chiaradio last year, his response quickly turned toward national figures.

According to Mississippi Today, Guest said that “the far-left ideology promoted by Bernie Sanders and other Democrat radicals” was the last thing Mississippi needed in Congress.

But Bernie Sanders is not running in Mississippi’s Third District. Michael Chiaradio is.

And Chiaradio’s own political history and platform complicate the attempt to place him neatly inside the national far left.

Before becoming the Democratic nominee, Mississippi Secretary of State business records show Chiaradio incorporated and served as president of an organization called The Center Solutions Party.

That history is consistent with the political identity he has presented during his congressional campaign.

He supports a strong social safety net and expanded healthcare access.

But he has also advocated for border security and low taxes.

Mississippi Today described his campaign as attempting to unite disaffected conservatives and Democrats around a localized economic message.

None of that means voters have to agree with him.

But it does mean they should evaluate the candidate who is actually running.

In the Third District, voters should compare Guest and Chiaradio.

That is considerably more relevant to Mississippi than what a socialist politician in New York or California believes.

Elections are ultimately contests between the names on the ballot.

In Mississippi’s Third Congressional District, those names are Michael Guest and Michael Chiaradio.

Mississippi voters should look at who is actually asking for their vote.

And on November 3, voters will have the opportunity to make that comparison for themselves.

The candidates are on the ballot. The real choice now belongs to Mississippi.