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H. B. No. 433 *HR26/R757* ~ OFFICIAL ~ G2/3
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To: Apportionment and
Elections; Judiciary B
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026
By: Representative Porter
HOUSE BILL NO. 433
AN ACT TO PROVIDE FULL SUFFRAGE RESTORATION TO ANY PERSON 1
DISQUALIFIED BY REASON OF CRIMINAL CONVICTION; TO AMEND SECTION 2
23-15-11, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE WHO SHALL BE 3
CONSIDERED A QUALIFIED ELECTOR; TO AMEND SECTION 23-15-19, 4
MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE THE SECRETARY OF STATE AND 5
THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS TO COLLABORATE TO ENSURE 6
VOTERS ARE PLACED BACK ON VOTER ROLLS; TO AMEND SECTION 23-15-47, 7
MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CONFORM TO THE PRECEDING SECTION; TO 8
AMEND SECTION 23-15-213, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE 9
TRAINING FOR ELECTION COMMISSIONERS TO ENSURE VOTERS WHO WERE 10
DISENFRANCHISED ARE ALLOWED TO REGISTER TO VOTE; TO AMEND SECTIONS 11
23-15-223, 23-15-125, 23-15-151, 23-15-153 AND 23-15-165, 12
MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CONFORM TO THE PRECEDING SECTION; TO 13
BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 97-39-3 AND 99-19-37, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 14
1972, FOR THE PURPOSE OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT; AND FOR RELATED 15
PURPOSES. 16
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 17
SECTION 1. (1) The right of suffrage is hereby fully 18
restored to any person disqualified by reason of criminal 19
conviction upon sentence completion. 20
(2) For purposes of this act, the term "sentence" means, and 21
is limited to, the term of incarceration, probation, and parole 22
for a disqualifying conviction. 23
SECTION 2. Section 23-15-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 24
amended as follows: 25
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23-15-11. Every inhabitant of this state, except persons 26
adjudicated to be non compos mentis, who is a citizen of the 27
United States of America, eighteen (18) years old and upwards, who 28
has resided in this state for thirty (30) days and for thirty (30) 29
days in the county in which he or she seeks to vote, and for 30
thirty (30) days in the incorporated municipality in which he or 31
she seeks to vote, and who, has been duly registered as an elector 32
under Section 23-15-33, and who * * * if convicted of vote fraud 33
or of any crime listed in Section 241, Mississippi Constitution of 34
1890, has completed his or her sentence as defined in Section 1 of 35
this act, shall be a qualified elector in and for the county, 36
municipality and voting precinct of his or her residence, and 37
shall be entitled to vote at any election upon compliance with 38
Section 23-15-563. If the thirtieth day to register before an 39
election falls on a Sunday or legal holiday, the registration 40
applications submitted on the business day immediately following 41
the Sunday or legal holiday shall be accepted and entered in the 42
Statewide Elections Management System for the purpose of enabling 43
voters to vote in the next election. Any person who will be 44
eighteen (18) years of age or older on or before the date of the 45
general election and who is duly registered to vote not less than 46
thirty (30) days before the primary election associated with the 47
general election, may vote in the primary election even though the 48
person has not reached his or her eighteenth birthday at the time 49
that the person seeks to vote at the primary election. No others 50
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than those specified in this section shall be entitled, or shall 51
be allowed, to vote at any election. 52
SECTION 3. Section 23-15-19, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 53
amended as follows: 54
23-15-19. (1) * * * Except when prohibited under subsection 55
(2), any person who has been convicted of vote fraud or any crime 56
listed in Section 241, Mississippi Constitution of 1890, such 57
crimes defined as "disenfranchising," shall not be registered if 58
the person seeking registration has not yet completed his or her 59
sentence as defined in Section 1 of this act, or if registered the 60
name of the person shall be removed from the Statewide Elections 61
Management System by the registrar or the election commissioners 62
of the county of his or her residence if the person at the time of 63
removal has not yet completed his or her sentence as defined in 64
Section 1 of this act. Whenever any person shall be convicted in 65
the circuit court of his or her county of a disenfranchising 66
crime, the county registrar shall thereupon remove his or her name 67
from the Statewide Elections Management System; and whenever any 68
person shall be convicted of a disenfranchising crime in any other 69
court of any county, the presiding judge of the court shall, on 70
demand, certify the fact in writing to the registrar of the county 71
in which the voter resides, who shall thereupon remove the name of 72
the person from the Statewide Elections Management System and 73
retain the certificate as a record of his or her office. 74
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(2) The Secretary of State shall be responsible for ensuring 75
that the public can access through the Secretary of State's 76
website and a phone number the following: (a) an up-to-date list 77
of which crimes, by code section number, are disenfranchising and 78
which crimes are not; and (b) the criteria people convicted of 79
disenfranchising crimes must satisfy to become refranchised. 80
(3) The Secretary of State, working with the Mississippi 81
Department of Corrections if necessary, shall be solely 82
responsible for ensuring that all officials responsible for 83
registering voters, including circuit clerks and/or election 84
commissioners, have up-to-date Internet-based electronic means by 85
which to determine whether a person has been convicted of a 86
disenfranchising offense, according to its code section number, 87
and whether he or she has completed his or her sentence as defined 88
in Section 1 of this act. An affirmative determination shall be a 89
complete defense in criminal cases where an elector relied upon it 90
to register to vote or to vote. A person seeking to vote shall 91
not be made to furnish documentary evidence or other proof of 92
sentence completion in order to register to vote or vote. 93
(4) No person may be denied the right to register to vote 94
and cast a ballot on the basis of his or her conviction of a 95
disenfranchising offense after sentence completion as defined in 96
Section 1 of this act. 97
SECTION 4. Section 23-15-47, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 98
amended as follows: 99
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23-15-47. (1) Any person who is qualified to register to 100
vote in the State of Mississippi may register to vote by mail-in 101
application in the manner prescribed in this section. 102
(2) The following procedure shall be used in the 103
registration of electors by mail: 104
(a) Any qualified elector may register to vote by 105
mailing or delivering a completed mail-in application to his or 106
her county registrar at least thirty (30) days before any 107
election; however, if the thirtieth day to register before an 108
election falls on a Sunday or legal holiday, the registration 109
applications submitted on the business day immediately following 110
the Sunday or legal holiday shall be accepted and entered into the 111
Statewide Elections Management System for the purpose of enabling 112
voters to vote in the next election. The postmark date of a 113
mailed application shall be the applicant's date of registration. 114
(b) Upon receipt of a mail-in application, the county 115
registrar shall stamp the application with the date of receipt, 116
and shall verify the application either by matching the 117
applicant's Mississippi driver's license number through the 118
Mississippi Department of Public Safety or by matching the 119
applicant's social security number through the American 120
Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators. Within fourteen (14) 121
days of receipt of a mail-in registration application, the county 122
registrar shall complete action on the application, including any 123
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attempts to notify the applicant of the status of his or her 124
application. 125
(c) If the county registrar determines that the 126
applicant is qualified and his or her application is legible and 127
complete, the county registrar shall mail the applicant written 128
notification that the application has been approved, specifying 129
the county voting precinct, municipal voting precinct, if any, 130
polling place and supervisor district in which the person shall 131
vote. This written notification of approval containing the 132
specified information shall be the voter's registration card. The 133
registration card shall be provided by the county registrar to the 134
applicant in accordance with Section 23-15-39. Upon entry of the 135
voter registration information into the Statewide Elections 136
Management System, the system shall assign a voter registration 137
number to the applicant. The assigned voter registration number 138
shall be clearly shown on the written notification of approval. 139
In mailing the written notification, the county registrar shall 140
note the following on the envelope: "DO NOT FORWARD". If any 141
registration notification form is returned as undeliverable, the 142
voter's registration shall be void. 143
(d) A mail-in application shall be rejected for any of 144
the following reasons: 145
(i) An incomplete portion of the application makes 146
it impossible for the registrar to determine the eligibility of 147
the applicant to register; 148
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(ii) A portion of the application is illegible in 149
the opinion of the county registrar and makes it impossible to 150
determine the eligibility of the applicant to register; 151
(iii) The county registrar is unable to determine, 152
from the address and information stated on the application, the 153
precinct in which the voter should be assigned or the supervisor 154
district in which he or she is entitled to vote; 155
(iv) The applicant is not qualified to register to 156
vote pursuant to Section 23-15-11; 157
(v) The county registrar determines that the 158
applicant is already registered as a qualified elector of the 159
county; 160
(vi) The county registrar is unable to verify the 161
application pursuant to subsection (2)(b) of this section. 162
(e) If the mail-in application of a person is subject 163
to rejection for any of the reasons set forth in paragraph (d)(i) 164
through (iii) of this subsection, and it appears to the county 165
registrar that the defect or omission is of such a minor nature 166
and that any necessary additional information may be supplied by 167
the applicant over the telephone or by further correspondence, the 168
county registrar may write or call the applicant at the telephone 169
number or address, or both, provided on the application. If the 170
county registrar is able to contact the applicant by mail or 171
telephone, the county registrar shall attempt to ascertain the 172
necessary information, and if this information is sufficient for 173
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the registrar to complete the application, the applicant shall be 174
registered. If the necessary information cannot be obtained by 175
mail or telephone, or is not sufficient to complete the 176
application within fourteen (14) days of receipt, the county 177
registrar shall give the applicant written notice of the rejection 178
and provide the reason for the rejection. The county registrar 179
shall further inform the applicant that he or she has a right to 180
attempt to register by appearing in person or by filing another 181
mail-in application. 182
(f) If a mail-in application is subject to rejection 183
for the reason stated in paragraph (d)(v) of this subsection and 184
the "present home address" portion of the application is different 185
from the residence address for the applicant found in the 186
Statewide Elections Management System, the mail-in application 187
shall be deemed a written request to update the voter's 188
registration pursuant to Section 23-15-13. The county registrar 189
or the election commissioners shall update the voter's residence 190
address in the Statewide Elections Management System and, if 191
necessary, advise the voter of a change in the location of his or 192
her county or municipal polling place by mailing the voter a new 193
voter registration card. 194
(3) The instructions and the application form for voter 195
registration by mail shall be in a form established by rule duly 196
adopted by the Secretary of State, and both shall state that a 197
person is fully and completely qualified to register to vote and 198
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cast a ballot after his or her conviction of a disenfranchising 199
offense upon sentence completion as defined in Section 1 of this 200
act. 201
(4) (a) The Secretary of State shall prepare and furnish 202
without charge the necessary forms for application for voter 203
registration by mail to each county registrar, municipal clerk, 204
all public schools, each private school that requests such 205
applications, and all public libraries. 206
(b) The Secretary of State shall distribute without 207
charge sufficient forms for application for voter registration by 208
mail to the Commissioner of Public Safety, who shall distribute 209
the forms to each driver's license examining and renewal station 210
in the state, and shall ensure that the forms are regularly 211
available to the public at such stations. 212
(c) Bulk quantities of forms for application for voter 213
registration by mail shall be furnished by the Secretary of State 214
to any person or organization. The Secretary of State shall 215
charge a person or organization the actual cost he or she incurs 216
in providing bulk quantities of forms for application for voter 217
registration to such person or organization. 218
(5) The originals of completed mail-in applications shall 219
remain on file in the office of the county registrar with copies 220
retained in the Statewide Elections Management System. 221
(6) If the applicant indicates on the application that he or 222
she resides within the city limits of a city or town in the county 223
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of registration, the county registrar shall enter the information 224
into the Statewide Elections Management System. 225
(7) If the applicant indicates on the application that he or 226
she has previously registered to vote in another county of this 227
state or another state, notice to the voter's previous county of 228
registration in this state shall be provided through the Statewide 229
Elections Management System. If the voter's previous place of 230
registration was in another state, notice shall be provided to the 231
voter's previous state of residence. 232
(8) Any person who attempts to register to vote by mail 233
shall be subject to the penalties for false registration provided 234
for in Section 23-15-17. 235
SECTION 5. Section 23-15-213, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 236
amended as follows: 237
[Until December 31, 2027, this section shall read as 238
follows:] 239
23-15-213. (1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this 240
section, there shall be elected five (5) election commissioners 241
for each county whose terms of office shall commence on the first 242
Monday of January following their election and who shall serve for 243
a term of four (4) years. Each of the commissioners shall be 244
required to attend a training seminar provided by the Secretary of 245
State and satisfactorily complete a skills assessment, and before 246
acting, shall take and subscribe the oath of office prescribed by 247
the Constitution. The training seminar and skills assessment 248
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shall include adequate training, including on an up-to-date 249
database, to ensure that persons are not denied the right to 250
register to vote and cast a ballot based on a conviction that is 251
not a disenfranchising crime, according to the code section 252
number, after sentence completion as defined in Section 1 of this 253
act. The oath shall be filed in the office of the clerk of the 254
chancery court. Upon filing the oath of office, the election 255
commissioner may be provided access to the Statewide Elections 256
Management System for the purpose of performing his or her duties. 257
Such skills assessment shall only be required once every four (4) 258
years. While engaged in their duties, the commissioners shall be 259
conservators of the peace in the county, with all the duties and 260
powers of such. The requirement to attend a training seminar as 261
provided in this subsection (1) shall be effective immediately 262
upon passage of this act so that election commissioners overseeing 263
the 2026 elections are able to receive the training. 264
(2) (a) At the general election in 2024 and every four (4) 265
years thereafter, the qualified electors of the board of 266
supervisors' Districts One, Three and Five shall elect in their 267
district one (1) election commissioner. 268
(b) At the general election in 2027, the qualified 269
electors of the board of supervisors' Districts Two and Four shall 270
elect in their district one (1) election commissioner, who shall 271
serve for a term of three (3) years. 272
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(c) No more than one (1) commissioner shall be a 273
resident of and reside in each supervisor's district of the 274
county; it being the purpose of this section that the county board 275
of election commissioners shall consist of one (1) person from 276
each supervisor's district of the county and that each 277
commissioner be elected from the supervisor's district in which he 278
or she resides. 279
(3) Candidates for county election commissioner shall 280
qualify by filing with the clerk of the board of supervisors of 281
their respective counties a petition personally signed by not less 282
than fifty (50) qualified electors of the supervisor's district in 283
which they reside, requesting that they be a candidate, by 5:00 284
p.m. not later than February 1 of the year in which the election 285
occurs and unless the petition is filed within the required time, 286
their names shall not be placed upon the ballot. All candidates 287
shall declare in writing their party affiliation, if any, to the 288
board of supervisors, and such party affiliation shall be shown on 289
the official ballot. 290
(4) The petition shall have attached thereto a certificate 291
of the county registrar showing the number of qualified electors 292
on each petition, which shall be furnished by the registrar on 293
request. The board shall determine the sufficiency of the 294
petition, and if the petition contains the required number of 295
signatures and is filed within the time required, the president of 296
the board shall verify that the candidate is a resident of the 297
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supervisor's district in which he or she seeks election and that 298
the candidate is otherwise qualified as provided by law, and shall 299
certify that the candidate is qualified to the chair or secretary 300
of the county election commission and the names of the candidates 301
shall be placed upon the ballot for the ensuing election. No 302
county election commissioner shall serve or be considered as 303
elected until he or she has received a majority of the votes cast 304
for the position or post for which he or she is a candidate. If a 305
majority vote is not received in the first election, then the two 306
(2) candidates receiving the most votes for each position or post 307
shall be placed upon the ballot for a second election to be held 308
four (4) weeks later in accordance with appropriate procedures 309
followed in other elections involving runoff candidates. 310
(5) In the first meeting in January of each year, the county 311
election commissioners shall organize by electing a chair and a 312
secretary, who shall serve a one-year term. The county election 313
commissioners shall provide the names of the chair and secretary 314
to the Secretary of State and provide notice of any change in 315
officers which may occur during the year. 316
(6) It shall be the duty of the chair to have the official 317
ballot printed and distributed at each general or special 318
election. 319
[From and after January 1, 2028, this section shall read as 320
follows:] 321
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23-15-213. (1) There shall be elected five (5) election 322
commissioners for each county whose terms of office shall commence 323
on the first Monday of January following their election and who 324
shall serve for a term of four (4) years. Each of the 325
commissioners shall be required to attend a training seminar 326
provided by the Secretary of State and satisfactorily complete a 327
skills assessment, and before acting, shall take and subscribe the 328
oath of office prescribed by the Constitution. The training 329
seminar and skills assessment shall include adequate training, 330
including on an up-to-date database, to ensure that persons are 331
not denied the right to register to vote and cast a ballot based 332
on a conviction that is not a disenfranchising crime, according to 333
the code section number, after sentence completion as defined in 334
Section 1 of this act. The oath shall be filed in the office of 335
the clerk of the chancery court. Upon filing the oath of office, 336
the election commissioner may be provided access to the Statewide 337
Elections Management System for the purpose of performing his or 338
her duties. Such skills assessment shall only be required once 339
every four (4) years. While engaged in their duties, the 340
commissioners shall be conservators of the peace in the county, 341
with all the duties and powers of such. 342
(2) (a) At the general election in 2028 and every four (4) 343
years thereafter, the qualified electors of the board of 344
supervisors' Districts One, Three and Five shall elect in their 345
district one (1) election commissioner. 346
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(b) At the general election in 2030 and every four (4) 347
years thereafter, the qualified electors of the board of 348
supervisors' Districts Two and Four shall elect in their district 349
one (1) election commissioner. 350
(c) No more than one (1) commissioner shall be a 351
resident of and reside in each supervisor's district of the 352
county; it being the purpose of this section that the county board 353
of election commissioners shall consist of one (1) person from 354
each supervisor's district of the county and that each 355
commissioner be elected from the supervisor's district in which he 356
or she resides. 357
(3) Candidates for county election commissioner shall 358
qualify by filing with the clerk of the board of supervisors of 359
their respective counties a petition personally signed by not less 360
than fifty (50) qualified electors of the supervisor's district in 361
which they reside, requesting that they be a candidate, by 5:00 362
p.m. not later than February 1 of the year in which the election 363
occurs and unless the petition is filed within the required time, 364
their names shall not be placed upon the ballot. All candidates 365
shall declare in writing their party affiliation, if any, to the 366
board of supervisors, and such party affiliation shall be shown on 367
the official ballot. 368
(4) The petition shall have attached thereto a certificate 369
of the county registrar showing the number of qualified electors 370
on each petition, which shall be furnished by the registrar on 371
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request. The board shall determine the sufficiency of the 372
petition, and if the petition contains the required number of 373
signatures and is filed within the time required, the president of 374
the board shall verify that the candidate is a resident of the 375
supervisor's district in which he or she seeks election and that 376
the candidate is otherwise qualified as provided by law, and shall 377
certify that the candidate is qualified to the chair or secretary 378
of the county election commission and the names of the candidates 379
shall be placed upon the ballot for the ensuing election. No 380
county election commissioner shall serve or be considered as 381
elected until he or she has received a majority of the votes cast 382
for the position or post for which he or she is a candidate. If a 383
majority vote is not received in the first election, then the two 384
(2) candidates receiving the most votes for each position or post 385
shall be placed upon the ballot for a second election to be held 386
four (4) weeks later in accordance with appropriate procedures 387
followed in other elections involving runoff candidates. 388
(5) In the first meeting in January of each year, the county 389
election commissioners shall organize by electing a chair and a 390
secretary, who shall serve a one-year term. The county election 391
commissioners shall provide the names of the chair and secretary 392
to the Secretary of State and provide notice of any change in 393
officers which may occur during the year. 394
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(6) It shall be the duty of the chair to have the official 395
ballot printed and distributed at each general or special 396
election. 397
SECTION 6. Section 23-15-223, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 398
amended as follows: 399
23-15-223. (1) The State Board of Election Commissioners, 400
on or before the fifteenth day of February succeeding each general 401
election, shall appoint in the several counties registrars of 402
elections, who shall hold office for four (4) years and until 403
their successors shall be duly qualified. The county registrar 404
shall be the clerk of the circuit court, unless the State Board of 405
Election Commissioners finds the circuit clerk to be an improper 406
person to register the names of the electors in the county. The 407
State Board of Election Commissioners shall draft rules and 408
regulations to provide for notice and hearing before removal of 409
the circuit clerk, if notice and a hearing is practicable under 410
the circumstances. 411
(2) The county registrar is empowered to appoint deputy 412
registrars, with the consent of the board of election 413
commissioners, who may discharge the duties of the registrar. 414
The clerk of every municipality shall be appointed as such a 415
deputy registrar, as contemplated by the National Voter 416
Registration Act (NVRA). 417
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(3) The county registrar shall not be held liable for any 418
malfeasance or nonfeasance in office by any deputy registrar who 419
is a deputy registrar by virtue of his or her office. 420
(4) The Secretary of State, in conjunction with the State 421
Board of Community and Junior Colleges, has developed and made 422
available online a computer skills training course for all newly 423
appointed registrars, which shall include adequate training, 424
including on an up-to-date database, to ensure that persons are 425
not denied the right to register to vote and cast a ballot on the 426
basis of his or her conviction of a disenfranchising offense, 427
according to its code section number, after sentence completion as 428
defined in Section 1 of this act, that shall be completed within 429
one hundred eighty (180) days of the commencement of their term of 430
office. 431
SECTION 7. Section 23-15-125, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 432
amended as follows: 433
23-15-125. The pollbook of each voting precinct shall 434
designate the voting precinct for which it is to be used, and 435
shall be ruled in appropriate columns, with printed or written 436
headings, as follows: date of registration; voter registration 437
number; name of electors; date of birth; and a number of blank 438
columns for the dates of elections. All qualified applicants who 439
register with the registrar shall be entered in the Statewide 440
Elections Management System. Only the names of those qualified 441
applicants who register within thirty (30) days before an election 442
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shall appear on the pollbooks of the election; however, if the 443
thirtieth day to register before an election falls on a Sunday or 444
legal holiday, the registration applications submitted on the 445
business day immediately following the legal holiday shall be 446
accepted and entered in the Statewide Elections Management System 447
for the purpose of enabling voters to vote in the next election. 448
When county election commissioners determine that any elector is 449
disqualified from voting, by reason of death, conviction of a 450
disenfranchising crime and has not completed his or her sentence 451
as defined in Section 1 of this act, removal from the 452
jurisdiction, failure to comply with the provisions of Section 453
23-15-152, or other legal cause, that fact shall be noted in the 454
Statewide Elections Management System and the voter's name shall 455
be purged from the Statewide Elections Management System, the 456
state's voter roll and the county's pollbooks. Nothing in this 457
section shall preclude the use of electronic pollbooks. 458
SECTION 8. Section 23-15-151, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 459
amended as follows: 460
23-15-151. The circuit clerk of each county is authorized 461
and directed to prepare and keep in his or her office a full and 462
complete list, in alphabetical order, of persons convicted of 463
voter fraud or of any crime listed in Section 241, Mississippi 464
Constitution of 1890. A certified copy of any enrollment by one 465
clerk to another will be sufficient authority for the enrollment 466
of the name, or names, in another county. A list of persons 467
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convicted of voter fraud, any crime listed in Section 241, 468
Mississippi Constitution of 1890, or any crime interpreted as 469
disenfranchising in later Attorney General opinions, shall also be 470
entered into the Statewide Elections Management System on a 471
quarterly basis. Voters who have been convicted in a Mississippi 472
state court of any disenfranchising crime and have not completed 473
their sentence as defined in Section 1 of this act are not 474
qualified electors as defined by Section 23-15-11 and shall be 475
purged or otherwise removed by the county registrar or county 476
election commissioners from the Statewide Elections Management 477
System. 478
SECTION 9. Section 23-15-153, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 479
amended as follows: 480
23-15-153. (1) At least during the following times, the 481
election commissioners shall meet at the office of the registrar 482
or the office of the election commissioners to carefully revise 483
the county voter roll as electronically maintained by the 484
Statewide Elections Management System and remove from the roll the 485
names of all voters who have requested to be purged from the voter 486
roll, died, received an adjudication of non compos mentis, been 487
convicted of a disenfranchising crime and have not completed his 488
or her sentence as defined in Section 1 of this act, failed to 489
comply with the provisions of Section 23-15-152, or otherwise 490
become disqualified as electors for any cause, and shall register 491
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the names of all persons who have duly applied to be registered 492
but have been illegally denied registration: 493
(a) On the Tuesday after the second Monday in January 494
1987 and every following year; 495
(b) On the first Tuesday in the month immediately 496
preceding the first primary election for members of Congress in 497
the years when members of Congress are elected; 498
(c) On the first Monday in the month immediately 499
preceding the first primary election for state, state district 500
legislative, county and county district offices in the years in 501
which those offices are elected; and 502
(d) On the second Monday of September preceding the 503
general election or regular special election day in years in which 504
a general election is not conducted. 505
Except for the names of those voters who are duly qualified 506
to vote in the election, no name shall be permitted to remain in 507
the Statewide Elections Management System; however, no name shall 508
be purged from the Statewide Elections Management System based on 509
a change in the residence of an elector except in accordance with 510
procedures provided for by the National Voter Registration Act of 511
1993 and as provided in Section 23-15-152. Except as otherwise 512
provided by Section 23-15-573, no person shall vote at any 513
election whose name is not in the county voter roll electronically 514
maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System. 515
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(2) Except as provided in this section, and subject to the 516
following annual limitations, the election commissioners shall be 517
entitled to receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten 518
Dollars ($110.00), to be paid from the county general fund, for 519
every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated 520
over two (2) or more days actually employed in the performance of 521
their duties in the conduct of an election or actually employed in 522
the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in 523
the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained 524
by the Statewide Elections Management System as required in 525
subsection (1) of this section: 526
(a) In counties having less than fifteen thousand 527
(15,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial 528
census, not more than fifty (50) days per year, with no more than 529
fifteen (15) additional days allowed for the conduct of each 530
election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 531
(b) In counties having fifteen thousand (15,000) 532
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 533
less than thirty thousand (30,000) residents according to the 534
latest federal decennial census, not more than seventy-five (75) 535
days per year, with no more than twenty-five (25) additional days 536
allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) 537
occurring in any calendar year; 538
(c) In counties having thirty thousand (30,000) 539
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 540
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less than seventy thousand (70,000) residents according to the 541
latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred (100) 542
days per year, with no more than thirty-five (35) additional days 543
allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (l) 544
occurring in any calendar year; 545
(d) In counties having seventy thousand (70,000) 546
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 547
less than ninety thousand (90,000) residents according to the 548
latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred 549
twenty-five (125) days per year, with no more than forty-five (45) 550
additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess 551
of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 552
(e) In counties having ninety thousand (90,000) 553
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 554
less than one hundred seventy thousand (170,000) residents 555
according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than 556
one hundred fifty (150) days per year, with no more than 557
fifty-five (55) additional days allowed for the conduct of each 558
election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 559
(f) In counties having one hundred seventy thousand 560
(170,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial 561
census but less than two hundred thousand (200,000) residents 562
according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than 563
one hundred seventy-five (175) days per year, with no more than 564
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sixty-five (65) additional days allowed for the conduct of each 565
election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 566
(g) In counties having two hundred thousand (200,000) 567
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 568
less than two hundred twenty-five thousand (225,000) residents 569
according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than 570
one hundred ninety (190) days per year, with no more than 571
seventy-five (75) additional days allowed for the conduct of each 572
election in excess of one (l) occurring in any calendar year; 573
(h) In counties having two hundred twenty-five thousand 574
(225,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial 575
census but less than two hundred fifty thousand (250,000) 576
residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not 577
more than two hundred fifteen (215) days per year, with no more 578
than eighty-five (85) additional days allowed for the conduct of 579
each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 580
(i) In counties having two hundred fifty thousand 581
(250,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial 582
census but less than two hundred seventy-five thousand (275,000) 583
residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not 584
more than two hundred thirty (230) days per year, with no more 585
than ninety-five (95) additional days allowed for the conduct of 586
each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 587
(j) In counties having two hundred seventy-five 588
thousand (275,000) residents according to the latest federal 589
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decennial census or more, not more than two hundred forty (240) 590
days per year, with no more than one hundred five (105) additional 591
days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (l) 592
occurring in any calendar year. 593
(3) In addition to the number of days authorized in 594
subsection (2) of this section, the board of supervisors of a 595
county may authorize, in its discretion, the election 596
commissioners to receive a per diem in the amount provided for in 597
subsection (2) of this section, to be paid from the county general 598
fund, for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours 599
accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the 600
performance of their duties in the conduct of an election or 601
actually employed in the performance of their duties for the 602
necessary time spent in the revision of the county voter roll as 603
electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management 604
System as required in subsection (1) of this section, not to 605
exceed five (5) days. 606
(4) (a) The election commissioners shall be entitled to 607
receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten Dollars 608
($110.00), to be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed 609
ten (10) days for every day or period of no less than five (5) 610
hours accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in 611
the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in 612
the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained 613
by the Statewide Elections Management System before any special 614
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election. For purposes of this paragraph, the regular special 615
election day shall not be considered a special election. The 616
annual limitations set forth in subsection (2) of this section 617
shall not apply to this paragraph. 618
(b) The election commissioners shall be entitled to 619
receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Sixty-five Dollars 620
($165.00), to be paid from the county general fund, for the 621
performance of their duties on the day of any primary, runoff, 622
general or special election; however, the board of supervisors 623
may, in its discretion, pay the election commissioners an 624
additional amount not to exceed Thirty-five Dollars ($35.00) per 625
election. The annual limitations set forth in subsection (2) of 626
this section shall apply to this paragraph. 627
(5) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive 628
a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten Dollars ($110.00), to 629
be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed fourteen (14) 630
days for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours 631
accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the 632
performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in the 633
revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained by 634
the Statewide Elections Management System and in the conduct of a 635
runoff election following either a general or special election. 636
(6) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive 637
only one (1) per diem payment for those days when the election 638
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commissioners discharge more than one (1) duty or responsibility 639
on the same day. 640
(7) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive 641
a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten Dollars ($110.00), to 642
be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed five (5) days 643
for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated 644
over two (2) or more days for those days when the election 645
commissioners shall be required to conduct an audit of an election 646
as provided in Section 23-15-615. 647
(8) In preparation for a municipal primary, runoff, general 648
or special election, the county registrar shall generate and 649
distribute the master voter roll and pollbooks from the Statewide 650
Elections Management System for the municipality located within 651
the county. The municipality shall pay the county registrar for 652
the actual cost of preparing and printing the municipal master 653
voter roll pollbooks. A municipality may secure "read only" 654
access to the Statewide Elections Management System and print its 655
own pollbooks using this information. 656
(9) County election commissioners who perform the duties of 657
an executive committee with regard to the conduct of a primary 658
election under a written agreement authorized by law to be entered 659
into with an executive committee shall receive per diem as 660
provided for in subsection (2) of this section. The days that 661
county election commissioners are employed in the conduct of a 662
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primary election shall be treated the same as days county election 663
commissioners are employed in the conduct of other elections. 664
(10) In addition to any per diem authorized by this section, 665
any election commissioner shall be entitled to the mileage 666
reimbursement rate allowable to federal employees for the use of a 667
privately owned vehicle while on official travel on election day. 668
(11) Every election commissioner shall sign personally a 669
certification setting forth the number of hours actually worked in 670
the performance of the commissioner's official duties and for 671
which the commissioner seeks compensation. The certification must 672
be on a form as prescribed in this subsection. The commissioner's 673
signature is, as a matter of law, made under the commissioner's 674
oath of office and under penalties of perjury. 675
The certification form shall be as follows: 676
COUNTY ELECTION COMMISSIONER 677
PER DIEM CLAIM FORM 678
NAME: ____________________________ COUNTY: _______________ 679
ADDRESS: _________________________ DISTRICT: _____________ 680
CITY: ______________ ZIP: ________ 681
PURPOSE APPLICABLE ACTUAL PER DIEM 682
DATE BEGINNING ENDING OF MS CODE HOURS DAYS 683
WORKED TIME TIME WORK SECTION WORKED EARNED 684
________________________________________________________________ 685
________________________________________________________________ 686
________________________________________________________________ 687
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TOTAL NUMBER OF PER DIEM DAYS EARNED 688
EXCLUDING ELECTION DAYS ________ 689
PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $110.00 690
TOTAL NUMBER PER DIEM DAYS EARNED 691
FOR ELECTION DAYS ________ 692
PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $165.00 693
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS ELECTION DAY 694
DISCRETIONARY ADDITION(S) 695
TO PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $35.00 696
TOTAL AMOUNT OF PER DIEM CLAIMED $_______ 697
I understand that I am signing this document under my oath as 698
an election commissioner and under penalties of perjury. 699
I understand that I am requesting payment from taxpayer funds 700
and that I have an obligation to be specific and truthful as to 701
the amount of hours worked and the compensation I am requesting. 702
Signed this the _____ day of ______________, ____. 703
________________________ 704
Commissioner's Signature 705
When properly completed and signed, the certification must be 706
filed with the clerk of the county board of supervisors before any 707
payment may be made. The certification will be a public record 708
available for inspection and reproduction immediately upon the 709
oral or written request of any person. 710
Any person may contest the accuracy of the certification in 711
any respect by notifying the chair of the commission, any member 712
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of the board of supervisors or the clerk of the board of 713
supervisors of the contest at any time before or after payment is 714
made. If the contest is made before payment is made, no payment 715
shall be made as to the contested certificate until the contest is 716
finally disposed of. The person filing the contest shall be 717
entitled to a full hearing, and the clerk of the board of 718
supervisors shall issue subpoenas upon request of the contestor 719
compelling the attendance of witnesses and production of documents 720
and things. The contestor shall have the right to appeal de novo 721
to the circuit court of the involved county, which appeal must be 722
perfected within thirty (30) days from a final decision of the 723
commission, the clerk of the board of supervisors or the board of 724
supervisors, as the case may be. 725
Any contestor who successfully contests any certification 726
will be awarded all expenses incident to his or her contest, 727
together with reasonable attorney's fees, which will be awarded 728
upon petition to the chancery court of the involved county upon 729
final disposition of the contest before the election commission, 730
board of supervisors, clerk of the board of supervisors, or, in 731
case of an appeal, final disposition by the court. The 732
commissioner against whom the contest is decided shall be liable 733
for the payment of the expenses and attorney's fees, and the 734
county shall be jointly and severally liable for same. 735
(12) Any election commissioner who has not received a 736
certificate issued by the Secretary of State pursuant to Section 737
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23-15-211 indicating that the election commissioner has received 738
the required elections seminar instruction and that the election 739
commissioner is fully qualified to conduct an election, shall not 740
receive any compensation authorized by this section or Section 741
23-15-239. 742
SECTION 10. Section 23-15-165, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 743
amended as follows: 744
23-15-165. (1) The Office of the Secretary of State, in 745
cooperation with the county registrars and election commissioners, 746
shall procure, implement and maintain an electronic information 747
processing system and programs capable of maintaining a 748
centralized database of all registered voters in the state. The 749
system shall encompass software and hardware, at both the state 750
and county level, software development training, conversion and 751
support and maintenance for the system. The Secretary of State 752
shall equip the Statewide Elections Management System with 753
appropriate security measures to protect private information of 754
the registered voter and the integrity of Mississippi elections. 755
This system shall be known as the "Statewide Elections Management 756
System" and shall constitute the official record of registered 757
voters in every county of the state. 758
(2) The Office of the Secretary of State shall develop and 759
implement the Statewide Elections Management System so that the 760
registrar and election commissioners of each county shall: 761
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(a) Verify that an applicant that is registering to 762
vote in that county is not registered to vote in another county; 763
(b) Be notified automatically that a registered voter 764
in its county has registered to vote in another county; 765
(c) Receive regular reports of death, changes of 766
address and convictions for disenfranchising crimes that apply to 767
voters registered in the county; 768
(d) Receive regular reports of voters who have 769
completed their sentence as defined in Section 1 of this act; 770
( * * *e) Retain all present functionality related to, 771
but not limited to, the use of voter roll data and to implement 772
such other functionality as the law requires to enhance the 773
maintenance of accurate county voter records and related jury 774
selection and redistricting programs; and 775
( * * *f) When evidence exists that a registered voter 776
may not be a citizen of the United States as provided in Section 777
23-15-15, send notification to the registrar of the location where 778
the person is registered to vote. 779
(3) As a part of the procurement and implementation of the 780
system, the Office of the Secretary of State shall, with the 781
assistance of the advisory committee, procure services necessary 782
to convert current voter registration records in the counties into 783
a standard, industry accepted file format that can be used on the 784
Statewide Elections Management System. Thereafter, all official 785
voter information shall be maintained on the Statewide Elections 786
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Management System. The standard industry accepted format of data 787
was reviewed and approved by a majority of the advisory committee 788
created in subsection (5) of this section after consultation with 789
the Circuit Clerks Association and the format may not be changed 790
without consulting the Circuit Clerks Association. 791
(4) The Secretary of State may, with the assistance of the 792
advisory committee, adopt rules and regulations necessary to 793
administer the Statewide Elections Management System. The rules 794
and regulations shall at least: 795
(a) Provide for the establishment and maintenance of a 796
centralized database for all voter registration information in the 797
state; 798
(b) Provide procedures for integrating data into the 799
centralized database; 800
(c) Provide security to ensure that only the registrar, 801
or his or her designee or other appropriate official, as the law 802
may require, can add information to, delete information from and 803
modify information in the system; 804
(d) Provide the registrar or his or her designee or 805
other appropriate official, as the law may require, access to the 806
system at all times, including the ability to download copies of 807
the industry standard file, for all purposes related to their 808
official duties, including, but not limited to, exclusive access 809
for the purpose of printing all local pollbooks; 810
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(e) Provide security and protection of all information 811
in the system and monitor the system to ensure that unauthorized 812
access is not allowed; 813
(f) Provide a procedure that will allow the registrar, 814
or his or her designee or other appropriate official, as the law 815
may require, to identify the precinct to which a voter should be 816
assigned; and 817
(g) Provide a procedure for phasing in or converting 818
existing manual and computerized voter registration systems in 819
counties to the Statewide Elections Management System. 820
(5) The Secretary of State established an advisory committee 821
to assist in developing system specifications, procurement, 822
implementation and maintenance of the Statewide Elections 823
Management System. The committee included two (2) representatives 824
from the Circuit Clerks Association, appointed by the association; 825
two (2) representatives from the Election Commissioners 826
Association of Mississippi, appointed by the association; one (1) 827
member of the Mississippi Association of Supervisors, or its 828
staff, appointed by the association; the Director of the Stennis 829
Institute of Government at Mississippi State University, or his or 830
her designee; the Executive Director of the Department of 831
Information Technology Services, or his or her designee; two (2) 832
persons knowledgeable about elections and information technology 833
appointed by the Secretary of State; and the Secretary of State, 834
who shall serve as the chair of the advisory committee. 835
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(6) (a) Social security numbers, telephone numbers, email 836
addresses, and date of birth and age information in statewide, 837
district, county and municipal voter registration files shall be 838
exempt from and shall not be subject to inspection, examination, 839
copying or reproduction under the Mississippi Public Records Act 840
of 1983. 841
(b) Copies of statewide, district, county or municipal 842
voter registration files, excluding social security numbers, 843
telephone numbers, email addresses, and date of birth and age 844
information, shall be provided to any person in accordance with 845
the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983 at a cost not to exceed 846
the actual cost of production. 847
SECTION 11. Section 97-39-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 848
brought forward as follows: 849
97-39-3. If any person shall fight a duel, or give or accept 850
a challenge to fight a duel, or knowingly carry or deliver such 851
challenge or the acceptance thereof, or be second to either party 852
to any duel, whether such act be done in the state or out of it, 853
or who shall go out of the state to fight a duel, or to assist in 854
the same as second, or to send, accept, or carry a challenge, 855
shall be disqualified from holding any office, be disenfranchised, 856
and incapable of holding or being elected to any post of honor, 857
profit or emolument, civil or military, under the constitution and 858
laws of this state; and the appointment of any such person to 859
office, as also all votes given to any such person, are illegal, 860
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and none of the votes given to such person for any office shall be 861
taken or counted. 862
SECTION 12. Section 99-19-37, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 863
brought forward as follows: 864
99-19-37. (1) Any person who has lost the right of suffrage 865
by reason of conviction of crime and has not been pardoned 866
therefrom, who thereafter served honorably in any branch of the 867
Armed Forces of the United States during the periods of World War 868
I or World War II as hereinafter defined and shall have received 869
an honorable discharge, or release therefrom, shall by reason of 870
such honorable service, have the full right of suffrage restored, 871
provided, however, this does not apply to any one having an 872
unfinished or suspended sentence. 873
(2) For the purposes of this section the period of World War 874
I shall be from April 6, 1917 to December 1, 1918, and the period 875
of World War II shall be from December 7, 1941 to December 31, 876
1946. 877
(3) In order to have restored, and to exercise, the right of 878
franchise under the provisions of this section a person affected 879
hereby shall have his discharge, or release, from the Armed Forces 880
of the United States recorded in the office of the chancery clerk 881
of the county in which such person desires to exercise the right 882
of franchise and if such discharge, or release, appears to be an 883
honorable discharge, or release, and shows such person to have 884
served honorably during either of the periods stated in subsection 885
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ST: Voter registration; authorize upon
completion of sentence.
(2) of this section such person shall have the full right of 886
suffrage restored as though an act had been passed by the 887
Legislature in accordance with Section 253 of the Constitution of 888
the State of Mississippi restoring the right of suffrage to such 889
person. 890
SECTION 13. This act shall take effect and be in force from 891
and after its passage. 892