In elections across the state on Tuesday, June 8, Mississippians will vote for leaders who will serve their towns and cities for the next four years, including mayors, city councilmembers, alderpersons and other offices.
Who Can Vote
Any current resident of a municipality who has resided there and who successfully registered to vote at least 30 days prior, or by May 10, 2021, may vote in their city’s elections.
If you registered to vote in the past but are not sure whether your voter registration is active or if you are registered at your current residence, you can check your registration status at this link.
If a registered voter’s name does not appear in the poll book, that voter has the right under Mississippi law to request an affidavit ballot. Affidavit voters are entitled to be notified whether or not their votes are counted and, if not, why.
Where To Vote
The Mississippi Secretary of State’s Office has temporarily removed the polling locator tool from its official website to avoid confusion. The tool uses county precinct information, but some cities use different locations for municipal elections.
To find out where to vote, the secretary of state’s office says voters should call their local municipal clerk’s office or call its elections hotline at 601-576-2550 or 1-800-829-6786.
You can look up your local municipal clerk’s phone number on the Mississippi Municipal League’s website at this link.
When To Vote
Polls statewide are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., on Tuesday, June 8. Any voter who is in line by 7 p.m. can vote if they remain in line.
Voter ID Requirements
To cast a ballot, voters must bring an accepted form of photo identification under the state’s voter ID law. Accepted IDs include:
- A driver’s license
- A photo ID card issued by a branch, department, or entity of the State of Mississippi
- A U.S. passport
- A government employee ID card
- A firearms license
- A student photo ID issued by an accredited Mississippi university, college, or community/junior college
- A U.S. military ID
- A tribal photo ID
- Any other photo ID issued by any branch, department, agency or entity of the U.S. government or any State government
- A Mississippi Voter Identification Card
More information on voter ID is available here.
How To Get A Free Voter Identification Card
Mississippians who do not have any of the above photo IDs may obtain a free Mississippi Voter Identification Card by visiting their local circuit clerk’s office (contact information and addresses for your county’s circuit clerk is available at this link). After applying for a voter-identification card, voters will receive the ID in the mail. However, voters who apply for a voter ID card within 45 days of an election may use the receipt they obtained from their circuit clerk’s office when applying for the card to vote on Election Day.
Any voter who shows up to the polls without either an accepted form of photo ID or a recent Mississippi Voter Identification Card application receipt can vote by affidavit. The vote will be counted only if the voter shows an accepted form of photo ID to the municipal clerk’s office within five business days after the election.
More information on voter ID is available here. The Mississippi Free Press recently fact-checked incorrect reports in other publications on free voter ID cards.
Absentee Mail Voting Deadline
Mississippians voting by absentee ballot must mail and have their ballots postmarked by June 8 for their votes to be counted. More information for absentee voters is available at this link.
Overseas and Military Voters
Mississippians who reside overseas, including military service members, can vote by email. For more information, contact the secretary of state’s Elections Hotline at 1-800-829-6786 or send an email to UOCAVA@sos.ms.gov.
All mail-in absentee ballots must be postmarked by Municipal General Election Day (June 8) and received by Municipal Clerks Offices within five business days of General Election Day in order to count.
Voting Assistance
Voters are entitled to assistance marking their ballots from a person of their choice if they need help due to disabilities, blindness or an inability to read or write. Poll workers and candidates whose names are on the ballot (as well as a candidate’s spouse, parent, sibling or child) are prohibited from assisting voters with ballot marking.
Polling Place Reminders
The secretary of state’s office offered these reminders to voters in an email bulletin last week:
- It is unlawful to campaign for any candidate within 150 feet of any entrance to a polling place, unless on private property.
- The polling places should be clear for 30 feet from every entrance of all people except election officials, voters waiting to vote, or authorized poll watchers.
- Voters are prohibited from taking pictures of their marked ballot.
- Voters are encouraged to practice good hygiene and follow CDC guidelines at the polls.
For Future Elections
If you are not already registered to vote, you will not be able to cast a ballot in the June 8 elections, but you can find information on how to register to vote in future elections at this link. Voters who need to update their voter registration information can do so at this link.
