Supreme Court Justices in Mississippi are elected. The Governor can appoint a Justice to fill the remainder of the 8 year term of a retiring Justice. Barbour appointed one Justice, Leslie King, who then won election in 2012 to serve through 2020.
OK, I just figured since Barbour was in office so long he must have appointed most of them. But regardless, they are all still part of the Republican machine in order to get elected, and that means beholden to Barbour.