The U.S. state of Mississippi is divided into 82 counties and contains 299 incorporated municipalities, consisting of cities, towns and villages. Mississippi's municipalities cover only 4.3% of the state's land mass, but are home to 50.5% of its population. Municipalities in Mississippi are classified according to population size. At time of incorporation, municipalities with populations of more than 2000 are classified as cities, municipalities containing between 301 and 2000 persons are considered towns, and municipalities between 100 and 300 persons are called villages. Places may be incorporated to become a city, town or village through a petition signed by two-thirds of the qualified voters who reside in the proposed municipality. As of the 2010 United States Census[update], the largest municipality by population in Mississippi is Jackson (pictured), with 173,514 residents, and the smallest is Satartia, with 55 residents. (Full list...)