Expunction and reenfranchisment; revise procedure for requesting.

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To: Judiciary, Division B;
Constitution
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Senator(s) Norwood

SENATE BILL NO. 2325

AN ACT TO PROVIDE THAT THE GOVERNOR MAY RESTORE THE RIGHT OF 1
SUFFRAGE TO CERTAIN PERSONS DISQUALIFIED BY REASON OF CONVICTION 2
OF A DISENFRANCHISING CRIME; TO PROVIDE THAT A PERSON SHALL BE 3
ENFRANCHISED AFTER COMPLETING ANY SENTENCE AND PAYING ANY FINES 4
IMPOSED BY THE SENTENCING COURT FOR SUCH CRIME; TO REQUIRE THE 5
MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS OR THE SENTENCING COURT, 6
WHICHEVER IS APPROPRIATE, TO ISSUE A WRITTEN REPORT TO THE 7
GOVERNOR ON PERSONS WHO MEET THE REQUISITE CONDITIONS FOR 8
RESTORATION OF SUFFRAGE RIGHTS; TO AMEND SECTION 23-15-11, 9
MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CONFORM; TO AMEND SECTION 23-15-19, 10
MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT A PERSON WHO PRESENTS AN 11
EXECUTIVE ORDER RESTORING THE RIGHT OF SUFFRAGE SHALL NOT BE 12
DENIED THE RIGHT TO REGISTER TO VOTE BASED ON A CONVICTION OF A 13
DISENFRANCHISING CRIME; TO AMEND SECTION 23-15-151, MISSISSIPPI 14
CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT THE CIRCUIT CLERK SHALL KEEP A FILE 15
OF CERTIFIED COPIES OF EXECUTIVE ORDERS RESTORING SUFFRAGE RIGHTS; 16
TO AMEND SECTIONS 23-15-125 AND 23-15-153, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 17
1972, TO PROVIDE THAT THE VOTER ROLL AND POLLBOOKS MUST BE UPDATED 18
IN A MANNER CONSISTENT WITH THIS ACT; TO AMEND SECTIONS 23-15-39 19
AND 23-15-47, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT THE 20
SECRETARY OF STATE WILL ADOPT VOTER REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS 21
WHICH STATE THAT A PERSON RESTORED THE RIGHT OF SUFFRAGE BY 22
EXECUTIVE ORDER IS NOT DISQUALIFIED FROM REGISTERING TO VOTE; TO 23
AMEND SECTION 23-15-165, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT 24
THE SECRETARY OF STATE WILL UPDATE THE STATEWIDE ELECTIONS 25
MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN A MANNER THAT WILL ALLOW LOCAL ELECTION 26
OFFICIALS TO VERIFY WHETHER A PERSON HAS BEEN ISSUED AN EXECUTIVE 27
ORDER RESTORING SUFFRAGE RIGHTS; TO AMEND SECTIONS 47-7-31, 28
47-7-41 AND 47-5-157, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE THE 29
DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS TO INVESTIGATE AND ISSUE REGULAR WRITTEN 30
REPORTS TO THE GOVERNOR ON THOSE PERSONS WHO SHOULD BE CONSIDERED 31
FOR EXECUTIVE PARDON; TO CREATE A SECTION OF LAW TO PROVIDE THAT 32
ANY PERSON GRANTED AN EXECUTIVE PARDON SHALL BE ENTITLED TO HAVE 33
HIS OR HER RECORD EXPUNGED; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 34
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 35
SECTION 1. (1) The Governor, by appropriate executive 36
order, is authorized to restore the right of suffrage to any 37
person disqualified by reason of conviction for vote fraud or any 38
crime listed in Section 241, Mississippi Constitution of 1890, 39
when all of the following conditions are met: 40
(a) The person has completed the sentence imposed by 41
the court of original jurisdiction upon conviction of the 42
disenfranchising crime, including the service of any term of 43
incarceration, parole, probation and post-release supervision; and 44
(b) The person has paid all fees and fines imposed by 45
the court of original jurisdiction upon conviction of the 46
disenfranchising crime. 47
(2) A person enfranchised under subsection (1) of this 48
section has the full right of suffrage as though an act had been 49
passed by the Legislature in accordance with Section 253, 50
Mississippi Constitution of 1890, restoring the right of suffrage 51
to the person. 52
SECTION 2. (1) An executive order restoring the right of 53
suffrage shall be sufficient evidence to prove that a person is 54
not disqualified to register to vote based on a conviction of a 55
disenfranchising crime. A person who presents an executive order 56
or duly enacted suffrage bill restoring the right of suffrage or 57
who swears and affirms that the person's right of suffrage has 58
been restored as provided in Section 1 of this act shall not be 59
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denied the right to register to vote or to cast a ballot based 60
upon a conviction of a disenfranchising crime. 61
(2) At a minimum, the executive order restoring the right of 62
suffrage shall provide as follows: 63
(a) The person to whom the executive order is issued 64
has satisfied the conditions imposed in Section 1(1) of this act; 65
and 66
(b) The court records and the records of the 67
Mississippi Department of Corrections indicate that the person has 68
not been convicted of another disenfranchising offense other than 69
the one (1) subject to the executive order. 70
(3) Upon issuance of an executive order restoring the right 71
of suffrage to a person, the Governor or other designated state 72
official shall forward a certified copy of the executive order to 73
the registrar in the county in which the person resides or desires 74
to be a qualified elector. 75
SECTION 3. (1) When a person is discharged or released as 76
provided in Section 47-5-157, the Mississippi Department of 77
Corrections shall automatically provide to the Governor a written 78
report on any person who meets the conditions set forth in Section 79
1(1) of this act. When a person is discharged from probation as 80
provided in Section 47-7-41, the court of original jurisdiction 81
shall automatically provide to the Governor a written report on 82
any person who meets the conditions set forth in Section 1(1) of 83
this act. The written report shall include the information 84
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required for the executive order as set forth in Section 2 of this 85
act. 86
(2) A person who satisfied the conditions set forth in 87
Section 1(1) of this act on or before July 1, 2020, may submit a 88
written request to the department or the court of original 89
jurisdiction for the case in which the person was convicted of a 90
disenfranchising crime. The department or the court shall each 91
have the duty and responsibility to determine if it is the 92
appropriate authority to issue the written report on the person, 93
to review the person's record, and to respond to the request. The 94
department or court shall respond to the person's request within 95
forty-five (45) days of receipt. If the person meets the 96
conditions set forth in Section 1(1) of this act, the person's 97
written report shall be provided to the Governor within forty-five 98
(45) days of receiving the initial request. 99
SECTION 4. Section 23-15-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 100
amended as follows: 101
23-15-11. Every inhabitant of this state, except persons 102
adjudicated to be non compos mentis, who is a citizen of the 103
United States of America, eighteen (18) years old and upwards, who 104
has resided in this state for thirty (30) days and for thirty (30) 105
days in the county in which he or she seeks to vote, and for 106
thirty (30) days in the incorporated municipality in which he or 107
she seeks to vote, and who has been duly registered as an elector 108
under Section 23-15-33, and who * * *, if convicted of vote fraud 109
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or of any crime listed in Section 241, Mississippi Constitution of 110
1890, has been restored the right of suffrage by executive order 111
as provided in Section 1 of this act or by act of the Legislature 112
under Section 253, Mississippi Constitution of 1890, shall be a 113
qualified elector in and for the county, municipality and voting 114
precinct of his or her residence, and shall be entitled to vote at 115
any election upon compliance with Section 23-15-563. If the 116
thirtieth day to register before an election falls on a Sunday or 117
legal holiday, the registration applications submitted on the 118
business day immediately following the Sunday or legal holiday 119
shall be accepted and entered in the Statewide Elections 120
Management System for the purpose of enabling voters to vote in 121
the next election. Any person who will be eighteen (18) years of 122
age or older on or before the date of the general election and who 123
is duly registered to vote not less than thirty (30) days before 124
the primary election associated with the general election, may 125
vote in the primary election even though the person has not 126
reached his or her eighteenth birthday at the time that the person 127
seeks to vote at the primary election. No others than those 128
specified in this section shall be entitled, or shall be allowed, 129
to vote at any election. 130
SECTION 5. Section 23-15-19, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 131
amended as follows: 132
23-15-19. (1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this 133
section, any person who has been convicted of vote fraud or any 134
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crime listed in Section 241, Mississippi Constitution of 1890, 135
such crimes defined as "disenfranchising," shall not be 136
registered, or if registered the name of the person shall be 137
removed from the Statewide Elections Management System by the 138
registrar or the election commissioners of the county of his or 139
her residence. Whenever any person shall be convicted in the 140
circuit court of his or her county of a disenfranchising crime, 141
the county registrar shall thereupon remove his or her name from 142
the Statewide Elections Management System; and whenever any person 143
shall be convicted of a disenfranchising crime in any other court 144
of any county, the presiding judge of the court shall, on demand, 145
certify the fact in writing to the registrar of the county in 146
which the voter resides, who shall thereupon remove the name of 147
the person from the Statewide Elections Management System and 148
retain the certificate as a record of his or her office. 149
(2) A person who presents to the registrar a suffrage bill 150
or an executive order restoring the right of suffrage shall not be 151
denied the right to register to vote based on that conviction of a 152
disenfranchising crime. A person who swears and affirms that the 153
person has been restored the right of suffrage shall not be denied 154
the right to register to vote based on that conviction of a 155
disenfranchising crime. 156
SECTION 6. Section 23-15-151, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 157
amended as follows: 158
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23-15-151. (1) The circuit clerk of each county is 159
authorized and directed to prepare and keep in his or her office a 160
full and complete list, in alphabetical order, of persons 161
convicted of * * * vote fraud or of any crime listed in Section 162
241, Mississippi Constitution of 1890, who has not been restored 163
the right of suffrage. A certified copy of any enrollment by one 164
clerk to another will be sufficient authority for the enrollment 165
of the name, or names, in another county. A list of persons 166
convicted of * * * vote fraud, any crime listed in Section 241, 167
Mississippi Constitution of 1890, or any crime interpreted as 168
disenfranchising in later Attorney General opinions and not 169
restored the right of suffrage, shall also be entered into the 170
Statewide Elections Management System on a quarterly basis. 171
Except as provided in Section 1 of this act, Section 23-15-19 and 172
Section 253 of the Mississippi Constitution of 1890, voters who 173
have been convicted in a Mississippi state court of any 174
disenfranchising crime are not qualified electors as defined by 175
Section 23-15-11 and shall be purged or otherwise removed by the 176
county registrar or county election commissioners from the 177
Statewide Elections Management System. 178
(2) The circuit clerk of each county is authorized and 179
directed to keep in the clerk's office, in alphabetical order, the 180
certified copies of suffrage bills and of executive orders 181
restoring the right of suffrage provided to the clerk as set forth 182
in Section 2 of this act. A certified copy of any executive order 183
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by one clerk to another will be sufficient authority for purposes 184
of Section 23-15-19(2) in another county. 185
SECTION 7. Section 23-15-125, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 186
amended as follows: 187
23-15-125. The pollbook of each voting precinct shall 188
designate the voting precinct for which it is to be used, and 189
shall be ruled in appropriate columns, with printed or written 190
headings, as follows: date of registration; voter registration 191
number; name of electors; date of birth; and a number of blank 192
columns for the dates of elections. All qualified applicants who 193
register with the registrar shall be entered in the Statewide 194
Elections Management System. Only the names of those qualified 195
applicants who register within thirty (30) days before an election 196
shall appear on the pollbooks of the election; however, if the 197
thirtieth day to register before an election falls on a Sunday or 198
legal holiday, the registration applications submitted on the 199
business day immediately following the legal holiday shall be 200
accepted and entered in the Statewide Elections Management System 201
for the purpose of enabling voters to vote in the next election. 202
When county election commissioners determine that any elector is 203
disqualified from voting, by reason of death, conviction of a 204
disenfranchising crime if the right of suffrage has not been 205
restored, removal from the jurisdiction, failure to comply with 206
the provisions of Section 23-15-152, or other legal cause, that 207
fact shall be noted in the Statewide Elections Management System 208
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and the voter's name shall be purged from the Statewide Elections 209
Management System, the state's voter roll and the county's 210
pollbooks. Nothing in this section shall preclude the use of 211
electronic pollbooks. 212
SECTION 8. Section 23-15-153, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 213
amended as follows: 214
23-15-153. (1) At least during the following times, the 215
election commissioners shall meet at the office of the registrar 216
or the office of the election commissioners to carefully revise 217
the county voter roll as electronically maintained by the 218
Statewide Elections Management System and remove from the roll the 219
names of all voters who have requested to be purged from the voter 220
roll, died, received an adjudication of non compos mentis, been 221
convicted of a disenfranchising crime if the right of suffrage has 222
not been restored, failed to comply with the provisions of Section 223
23-15-152, or otherwise become disqualified as electors for any 224
cause, and shall register the names of all persons who have duly 225
applied to be registered but have been illegally denied 226
registration: 227
(a) On the Tuesday after the second Monday in January 228
1987 and every following year; 229
(b) On the first Tuesday in the month immediately 230
preceding the first primary election for members of Congress in 231
the years when members of Congress are elected; 232
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(c) On the first Monday in the month immediately 233
preceding the first primary election for state, state district 234
legislative, county and county district offices in the years in 235
which those offices are elected; and 236
(d) On the second Monday of September preceding the 237
general election or regular special election day in years in which 238
a general election is not conducted. 239
Except for the names of those voters who are duly qualified 240
to vote in the election, no name shall be permitted to remain in 241
the Statewide Elections Management System; however, no name shall 242
be purged from the Statewide Elections Management System based on 243
a change in the residence of an elector except in accordance with 244
procedures provided for by the National Voter Registration Act of 245
1993 and as provided in Section 23-15-152. Except as otherwise 246
provided by Section 23-15-573, no person shall vote at any 247
election whose name is not in the county voter roll electronically 248
maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System. 249
(2) Except as provided in this section, and subject to the 250
following annual limitations, the election commissioners shall be 251
entitled to receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten 252
Dollars ($110.00), to be paid from the county general fund, for 253
every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated 254
over two (2) or more days actually employed in the performance of 255
their duties in the conduct of an election or actually employed in 256
the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in 257
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the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained 258
by the Statewide Elections Management System as required in 259
subsection (1) of this section: 260
(a) In counties having less than fifteen thousand 261
(15,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial 262
census, not more than fifty (50) days per year, with no more than 263
fifteen (15) additional days allowed for the conduct of each 264
election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 265
(b) In counties having fifteen thousand (15,000) 266
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 267
less than thirty thousand (30,000) residents according to the 268
latest federal decennial census, not more than seventy-five (75) 269
days per year, with no more than twenty-five (25) additional days 270
allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) 271
occurring in any calendar year; 272
(c) In counties having thirty thousand (30,000) 273
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 274
less than seventy thousand (70,000) residents according to the 275
latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred (100) 276
days per year, with no more than thirty-five (35) additional days 277
allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (l) 278
occurring in any calendar year; 279
(d) In counties having seventy thousand (70,000) 280
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 281
less than ninety thousand (90,000) residents according to the 282
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latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred 283
twenty-five (125) days per year, with no more than forty-five (45) 284
additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess 285
of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 286
(e) In counties having ninety thousand (90,000) 287
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 288
less than one hundred seventy thousand (170,000) residents 289
according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than 290
one hundred fifty (150) days per year, with no more than 291
fifty-five (55) additional days allowed for the conduct of each 292
election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 293
(f) In counties having one hundred seventy thousand 294
(170,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial 295
census but less than two hundred thousand (200,000) residents 296
according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than 297
one hundred seventy-five (175) days per year, with no more than 298
sixty-five (65) additional days allowed for the conduct of each 299
election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 300
(g) In counties having two hundred thousand (200,000) 301
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 302
less than two hundred twenty-five thousand (225,000) residents 303
according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than 304
one hundred ninety (190) days per year, with no more than 305
seventy-five (75) additional days allowed for the conduct of each 306
election in excess of one (l) occurring in any calendar year; 307
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(h) In counties having two hundred twenty-five thousand 308
(225,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial 309
census but less than two hundred fifty thousand (250,000) 310
residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not 311
more than two hundred fifteen (215) days per year, with no more 312
than eighty-five (85) additional days allowed for the conduct of 313
each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 314
(i) In counties having two hundred fifty thousand 315
(250,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial 316
census but less than two hundred seventy-five thousand (275,000) 317
residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not 318
more than two hundred thirty (230) days per year, with no more 319
than ninety-five (95) additional days allowed for the conduct of 320
each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 321
(j) In counties having two hundred seventy-five 322
thousand (275,000) residents according to the latest federal 323
decennial census or more, not more than two hundred forty (240) 324
days per year, with no more than one hundred five (105) additional 325
days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (l) 326
occurring in any calendar year. 327
(3) In addition to the number of days authorized in 328
subsection (2) of this section, the board of supervisors of a 329
county may authorize, in its discretion, the election 330
commissioners to receive a per diem in the amount provided for in 331
subsection (2) of this section, to be paid from the county general 332
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fund, for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours 333
accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the 334
performance of their duties in the conduct of an election or 335
actually employed in the performance of their duties for the 336
necessary time spent in the revision of the county voter roll as 337
electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management 338
System as required in subsection (1) of this section, not to 339
exceed five (5) days. 340
(4) (a) The election commissioners shall be entitled to 341
receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten Dollars 342
($110.00), to be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed 343
ten (10) days for every day or period of no less than five (5) 344
hours accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in 345
the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in 346
the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained 347
by the Statewide Elections Management System before any special 348
election. For purposes of this paragraph, the regular special 349
election day shall not be considered a special election. The 350
annual limitations set forth in subsection (2) of this section 351
shall not apply to this paragraph. 352
(b) The election commissioners shall be entitled to 353
receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Sixty-five Dollars 354
($165.00), to be paid from the county general fund, for the 355
performance of their duties on the day of any primary, runoff, 356
general or special election; however, the board of supervisors 357
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may, in its discretion, pay the election commissioners an 358
additional amount not to exceed Thirty-five Dollars ($35.00) per 359
election. The annual limitations set forth in subsection (2) of 360
this section shall apply to this paragraph. 361
(5) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive 362
a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten Dollars ($110.00), to 363
be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed fourteen (14) 364
days for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours 365
accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the 366
performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in the 367
revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained by 368
the Statewide Elections Management System and in the conduct of a 369
runoff election following either a general or special election. 370
(6) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive 371
only one (1) per diem payment for those days when the election 372
commissioners discharge more than one (1) duty or responsibility 373
on the same day. 374
(7) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive 375
a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten Dollars ($110.00), to 376
be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed five (5) days 377
for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated 378
over two (2) or more days for those days when the election 379
commissioners shall be required to conduct an audit of an election 380
as provided in Section 23-15-615. 381
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(8) In preparation for a municipal primary, runoff, general 382
or special election, the county registrar shall generate and 383
distribute the master voter roll and pollbooks from the Statewide 384
Elections Management System for the municipality located within 385
the county. The municipality shall pay the county registrar for 386
the actual cost of preparing and printing the municipal master 387
voter roll pollbooks. A municipality may secure "read only" 388
access to the Statewide Elections Management System and print its 389
own pollbooks using this information. 390
(9) County election commissioners who perform the duties of 391
an executive committee with regard to the conduct of a primary 392
election under a written agreement authorized by law to be entered 393
into with an executive committee shall receive per diem as 394
provided for in subsection (2) of this section. The days that 395
county election commissioners are employed in the conduct of a 396
primary election shall be treated the same as days county election 397
commissioners are employed in the conduct of other elections. 398
(10) In addition to any per diem authorized by this section, 399
any election commissioner shall be entitled to the mileage 400
reimbursement rate allowable to federal employees for the use of a 401
privately owned vehicle while on official travel on election day. 402
(11) Every election commissioner shall sign personally a 403
certification setting forth the number of hours actually worked in 404
the performance of the commissioner's official duties and for 405
which the commissioner seeks compensation. The certification must 406
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be on a form as prescribed in this subsection. The commissioner's 407
signature is, as a matter of law, made under the commissioner's 408
oath of office and under penalties of perjury. 409
The certification form shall be as follows: 410
COUNTY ELECTION COMMISSIONER 411
PER DIEM CLAIM FORM 412
NAME: ____________________________ COUNTY: _______________ 413
ADDRESS: _________________________ DISTRICT: _____________ 414
CITY: ______________ ZIP: ________ 415
PURPOSE APPLICABLE ACTUAL PER DIEM 416
DATE BEGINNING ENDING OF MS CODE HOURS DAYS 417
WORKED TIME TIME WORK SECTION WORKED EARNED 418
________________________________________________________________ 419
________________________________________________________________ 420
________________________________________________________________ 421
TOTAL NUMBER OF PER DIEM DAYS EARNED 422
EXCLUDING ELECTION DAYS ________ 423
PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $110.00 424
TOTAL NUMBER PER DIEM DAYS EARNED 425
FOR ELECTION DAYS ________ 426
PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $165.00 427
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS ELECTION DAY 428
DISCRETIONARY ADDITION(S) 429
TO PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $35.00 430
TOTAL AMOUNT OF PER DIEM CLAIMED $_______ 431
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I understand that I am signing this document under my oath as 432
an election commissioner and under penalties of perjury. 433
I understand that I am requesting payment from taxpayer funds 434
and that I have an obligation to be specific and truthful as to 435
the amount of hours worked and the compensation I am requesting. 436
Signed this the _____ day of ______________, ____. 437
________________________ 438
Commissioner's Signature 439
When properly completed and signed, the certification must be 440
filed with the clerk of the county board of supervisors before any 441
payment may be made. The certification will be a public record 442
available for inspection and reproduction immediately upon the 443
oral or written request of any person. 444
Any person may contest the accuracy of the certification in 445
any respect by notifying the chair of the commission, any member 446
of the board of supervisors or the clerk of the board of 447
supervisors of the contest at any time before or after payment is 448
made. If the contest is made before payment is made, no payment 449
shall be made as to the contested certificate until the contest is 450
finally disposed of. The person filing the contest shall be 451
entitled to a full hearing, and the clerk of the board of 452
supervisors shall issue subpoenas upon request of the contestor 453
compelling the attendance of witnesses and production of documents 454
and things. The contestor shall have the right to appeal de novo 455
to the circuit court of the involved county, which appeal must be 456
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perfected within thirty (30) days from a final decision of the 457
commission, the clerk of the board of supervisors or the board of 458
supervisors, as the case may be. 459
Any contestor who successfully contests any certification 460
will be awarded all expenses incident to his or her contest, 461
together with reasonable attorney's fees, which will be awarded 462
upon petition to the chancery court of the involved county upon 463
final disposition of the contest before the election commission, 464
board of supervisors, clerk of the board of supervisors, or, in 465
case of an appeal, final disposition by the court. The 466
commissioner against whom the contest is decided shall be liable 467
for the payment of the expenses and attorney's fees, and the 468
county shall be jointly and severally liable for same. 469
(12) Any election commissioner who has not received a 470
certificate issued by the Secretary of State pursuant to Section 471
23-15-211 indicating that the election commissioner has received 472
the required elections seminar instruction and that the election 473
commissioner is fully qualified to conduct an election, shall not 474
receive any compensation authorized by this section or Section 475
23-15-239. 476
SECTION 9. Section 23-15-39, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 477
amended as follows: 478
23-15-39. (1) Applications for registration as electors of 479
this state, which are sworn to and subscribed before the registrar 480
or deputy registrar authorized by law and which are not made by 481
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mail, shall be made upon a form established by rule duly adopted 482
by the Secretary of State. The application shall state that a 483
person who has been restored the right of suffrage by executive 484
order as provided in Section 1 of this act, by gubernatorial 485
pardon, or by legislative act, is not disqualified to register to 486
vote under Section 23-15-11. 487
(2) The boards of supervisors shall make proper allowances 488
for office supplies reasonably necessitated by the registration of 489
county electors. 490
(3) If the applicant indicates on the application that he or 491
she resides within the city limits of a city or town in the county 492
of registration, the county registrar shall process the 493
application for registration or changes to the registration as 494
provided by law. 495
(4) If the applicant indicates on the application that he or 496
she has previously registered to vote in another county of this 497
state or another state, notice to the voter's previous county of 498
registration in this state shall be provided by the Statewide 499
Elections Management System. If the voter's previous place of 500
registration was in another state, notice shall be provided to the 501
voter's previous state of residence if the Statewide Elections 502
Management System has that capability. 503
(5) The county registrar shall provide to the person making 504
the application a copy of the application upon which has been 505
written the county voting precinct and municipal voting precinct, 506
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if any, in which the person shall vote. Upon entry of the voter 507
registration information into the Statewide Elections Management 508
System, the system shall assign a voter registration number to the 509
person, and the county registrar shall mail the applicant a voter 510
registration card to the mailing address provided on the 511
application. 512
(6) Any person desiring an application for registration may 513
secure an application from the registrar of the county of which he 514
or she is a resident and may take the application with him or her 515
and secure assistance in completing the application from any 516
person of the applicant's choice. It shall be the duty of all 517
registrars to furnish applications for registration to all persons 518
requesting them, and it shall likewise be the registrar's duty to 519
furnish aid and assistance in the completing of the application 520
when requested by an applicant. The application for registration 521
shall be sworn to and subscribed before the registrar or deputy 522
registrar at the municipal clerk's office, the county registrar's 523
office or any other location where the applicant is allowed to 524
register to vote. The registrar shall not charge a fee or cost to 525
the applicant for accepting the application or administering the 526
oath or for any other duty imposed by law regarding the 527
registration of electors. 528
(7) If the person making the application is unable to read 529
or write, for reason of disability or otherwise, he or she shall 530
not be required to personally complete the application in writing 531
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and execute the oath. In such cases, the registrar or deputy 532
registrar shall read the application and oath to the person, and 533
the person's answers thereto shall be recorded by the registrar or 534
the registrar's deputy. The person shall be registered as an 535
elector if he or she otherwise meets the requirements to be 536
registered as an elector. The registrar shall record the 537
responses of the person and the recorded responses shall be 538
retained permanently by the registrar. The county registrar shall 539
enter the voter registration information into the Statewide 540
Elections Management System and designate the entry as an assisted 541
filing. 542
(8) The receipt of a copy of the application for 543
registration sent pursuant to Section 23-15-35(2) shall be 544
sufficient to allow the applicant to be registered as an elector 545
of this state, if the application is not challenged. 546
(9) In any case in which the corporate boundaries of a 547
municipality change, whether by annexation or redistricting, the 548
municipal clerk shall, within ten (10) days after approval of the 549
change in corporate boundaries, provide to the county registrar 550
conforming geographic data that is compatible with the Statewide 551
Elections Management System. The data shall be developed by the 552
municipality's use of a standardized format specified by the 553
Statewide Elections Management System. The county registrar, 554
county election commissioner or other county official, who has 555
completed an annual training seminar sponsored by the Secretary of 556
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State pertaining to the implementation of new boundary lines in 557
the Statewide Elections Management System and received 558
certification for that training, shall update the municipal 559
boundary information into the Statewide Elections Management 560
System. The Statewide Elections Management System updates the 561
municipal voter registration records and assigns electors to their 562
municipal voting precincts. The county registrar shall forward to 563
the municipal clerk written notification of the additions and 564
changes, and the municipal clerk shall forward to the affected 565
municipal electors written notification of the additions and 566
changes. 567
SECTION 10. Section 23-15-47, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 568
amended as follows: 569
23-15-47. (1) Any person who is qualified to register to 570
vote in the State of Mississippi may register to vote by mail-in 571
application in the manner prescribed in this section. 572
(2) The following procedure shall be used in the 573
registration of electors by mail: 574
(a) Any qualified elector may register to vote by 575
mailing or delivering a completed mail-in application to his or 576
her county registrar at least thirty (30) days before any 577
election; however, if the thirtieth day to register before an 578
election falls on a Sunday or legal holiday, the registration 579
applications submitted on the business day immediately following 580
the Sunday or legal holiday shall be accepted and entered into the 581
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Statewide Elections Management System for the purpose of enabling 582
voters to vote in the next election. The postmark date of a 583
mailed application shall be the applicant's date of registration. 584
(b) Upon receipt of a mail-in application, the county 585
registrar shall stamp the application with the date of receipt, 586
and shall verify the application either by matching the 587
applicant's Mississippi driver's license number through the 588
Mississippi Department of Public Safety or by matching the 589
applicant's social security number through the American 590
Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators. Within fourteen (14) 591
days of receipt of a mail-in registration application, the county 592
registrar shall complete action on the application, including any 593
attempts to notify the applicant of the status of his or her 594
application. 595
(c) If the county registrar determines that the 596
applicant is qualified and his or her application is legible and 597
complete, the county registrar shall mail the applicant written 598
notification that the application has been approved, specifying 599
the county voting precinct, municipal voting precinct, if any, 600
polling place and supervisor district in which the person shall 601
vote. This written notification of approval containing the 602
specified information shall be the voter's registration card. The 603
registration card shall be provided by the county registrar to the 604
applicant in accordance with Section 23-15-39. Upon entry of the 605
voter registration information into the Statewide Elections 606
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Management System, the system shall assign a voter registration 607
number to the applicant. The assigned voter registration number 608
shall be clearly shown on the written notification of approval. 609
In mailing the written notification, the county registrar shall 610
note the following on the envelope: "DO NOT FORWARD". If any 611
registration notification form is returned as undeliverable, the 612
voter's registration shall be void. 613
(d) A mail-in application shall be rejected for any of 614
the following reasons: 615
(i) An incomplete portion of the application makes 616
it impossible for the registrar to determine the eligibility of 617
the applicant to register; 618
(ii) A portion of the application is illegible in 619
the opinion of the county registrar and makes it impossible to 620
determine the eligibility of the applicant to register; 621
(iii) The county registrar is unable to determine, 622
from the address and information stated on the application, the 623
precinct in which the voter should be assigned or the supervisor 624
district in which he or she is entitled to vote; 625
(iv) The applicant is not qualified to register to 626
vote pursuant to Section 23-15-11; 627
(v) The county registrar determines that the 628
applicant is already registered as a qualified elector of the 629
county; 630
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(vi) The county registrar is unable to verify the 631
application pursuant to subsection (2)(b) of this section. 632
(e) If the mail-in application of a person is subject 633
to rejection for any of the reasons set forth in paragraph (d)(i) 634
through (iii) of this subsection, and it appears to the county 635
registrar that the defect or omission is of such a minor nature 636
and that any necessary additional information may be supplied by 637
the applicant over the telephone or by further correspondence, the 638
county registrar may write or call the applicant at the telephone 639
number or address, or both, provided on the application. If the 640
county registrar is able to contact the applicant by mail or 641
telephone, the county registrar shall attempt to ascertain the 642
necessary information, and if this information is sufficient for 643
the registrar to complete the application, the applicant shall be 644
registered. If the necessary information cannot be obtained by 645
mail or telephone, or is not sufficient to complete the 646
application within fourteen (14) days of receipt, the county 647
registrar shall give the applicant written notice of the rejection 648
and provide the reason for the rejection. The county registrar 649
shall further inform the applicant that he or she has a right to 650
attempt to register by appearing in person or by filing another 651
mail-in application. 652
(f) If a mail-in application is subject to rejection 653
for the reason stated in paragraph (d)(v) of this subsection and 654
the "present home address" portion of the application is different 655
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from the residence address for the applicant found in the 656
Statewide Elections Management System, the mail-in application 657
shall be deemed a written request to update the voter's 658
registration pursuant to Section 23-15-13. The county registrar 659
or the election commissioners shall update the voter's residence 660
address in the Statewide Elections Management System and, if 661
necessary, advise the voter of a change in the location of his or 662
her county or municipal polling place by mailing the voter a new 663
voter registration card. 664
(3) The instructions and the application form for voter 665
registration by mail shall be in a form established by rule duly 666
adopted by the Secretary of State. The instructions and the 667
application must state that a person who has been restored the 668
right of suffrage by executive order as provided in Section 1 of 669
this act, by gubernatorial pardon, or by legislative act, is not 670
disqualified to register to vote pursuant to Section 23-15-11. 671
(4) (a) The Secretary of State shall prepare and furnish 672
without charge the necessary forms for application for voter 673
registration by mail to each county registrar, municipal clerk, 674
all public schools, each private school that requests such 675
applications * * * and all public libraries. 676
(b) The Secretary of State shall distribute without 677
charge sufficient forms for application for voter registration by 678
mail to the Commissioner of Public Safety, who shall distribute 679
the forms to each driver's license examining and renewal station 680
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in the state, and shall ensure that the forms are regularly 681
available to the public at such stations. 682
(c) Bulk quantities of forms for application for voter 683
registration by mail shall be furnished by the Secretary of State 684
to any person or organization. The Secretary of State shall 685
charge a person or organization the actual cost he or she incurs 686
in providing bulk quantities of forms for application for voter 687
registration to such person or organization. 688
(5) The originals of completed mail-in applications shall 689
remain on file in the office of the county registrar with copies 690
retained in the Statewide Elections Management System. 691
(6) If the applicant indicates on the application that he or 692
she resides within the city limits of a city or town in the county 693
of registration, the county registrar shall enter the information 694
into the Statewide Elections Management System. 695
(7) If the applicant indicates on the application that he or 696
she has previously registered to vote in another county of this 697
state or another state, notice to the voter's previous county of 698
registration in this state shall be provided through the Statewide 699
Elections Management System. If the voter's previous place of 700
registration was in another state, notice shall be provided to the 701
voter's previous state of residence. 702
(8) Any person who attempts to register to vote by mail 703
shall be subject to the penalties for false registration provided 704
for in Section 23-15-17. 705
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SECTION 11. Section 23-15-165, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 706
amended as follows: 707
23-15-165. (1) The Office of the Secretary of State, in 708
cooperation with the county registrars and election commissioners, 709
shall procure, implement and maintain an electronic information 710
processing system and programs capable of maintaining a 711
centralized database of all registered voters in the state. The 712
system shall encompass software and hardware, at both the state 713
and county level, software development training, conversion and 714
support and maintenance for the system. The Secretary of State 715
shall equip the Statewide Elections Management System with 716
appropriate security measures to protect private information of 717
the registered voter and the integrity of Mississippi elections. 718
This system shall be known as the "Statewide Elections Management 719
System" and shall constitute the official record of registered 720
voters in every county of the state. 721
(2) The Office of the Secretary of State shall develop and 722
implement the Statewide Elections Management System so that the 723
registrar and election commissioners of each county shall: 724
(a) Verify that an applicant that is registering to 725
vote in that county is not registered to vote in another county; 726
(b) Be notified automatically that a registered voter 727
in its county has registered to vote in another county; 728
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(c) Receive regular reports of death, changes of 729
address and convictions for disenfranchising crimes that apply to 730
voters registered in the county; 731
(d) Receive regular reports of executive orders 732
restoring the right of suffrage issued as provided in Section 2 of 733
this act; 734
( * * *e) Retain all present functionality related to, 735
but not limited to, the use of voter roll data and to implement 736
such other functionality as the law requires to enhance the 737
maintenance of accurate county voter records and related jury 738
selection and redistricting programs; and 739
( * * *f) When evidence exists that a registered voter 740
may not be a citizen of the United States as provided in Section 741
23-15-15, send notification to the registrar of the location where 742
the person is registered to vote. 743
(3) As a part of the procurement and implementation of the 744
system, the Office of the Secretary of State shall, with the 745
assistance of the advisory committee, procure services necessary 746
to convert current voter registration records in the counties into 747
a standard, industry accepted file format that can be used on the 748
Statewide Elections Management System. Thereafter, all official 749
voter information shall be maintained on the Statewide Elections 750
Management System. The standard industry accepted format of data 751
was reviewed and approved by a majority of the advisory committee 752
created in subsection (5) of this section after consultation with 753
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the Circuit Clerks Association, and the format may not be changed 754
without consulting the Circuit Clerks Association. 755
(4) The Secretary of State may, with the assistance of the 756
advisory committee, adopt rules and regulations necessary to 757
administer the Statewide Elections Management System. The rules 758
and regulations shall at least: 759
(a) Provide for the establishment and maintenance of a 760
centralized database for all voter registration information in the 761
state; 762
(b) Provide procedures for integrating data into the 763
centralized database; 764
(c) Provide security to ensure that only the registrar, 765
or his or her designee or other appropriate official, as the law 766
may require, can add information to, delete information from and 767
modify information in the system; 768
(d) Provide the registrar or his or her designee or 769
other appropriate official, as the law may require, access to the 770
system at all times, including the ability to download copies of 771
the industry standard file, for all purposes related to their 772
official duties, including, but not limited to, exclusive access 773
for the purpose of printing all local pollbooks; 774
(e) Provide security and protection of all information 775
in the system and monitor the system to ensure that unauthorized 776
access is not allowed; 777
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(f) Provide a procedure that will allow the registrar, 778
or his or her designee or other appropriate official, as the law 779
may require, to identify the precinct to which a voter should be 780
assigned; and 781
(g) Provide a procedure for phasing in or converting 782
existing manual and computerized voter registration systems in 783
counties to the Statewide Elections Management System. 784
(5) The Secretary of State established an advisory committee 785
to assist in developing system specifications, procurement, 786
implementation and maintenance of the Statewide Elections 787
Management System. The committee included two (2) representatives 788
from the Circuit Clerks Association, appointed by the association; 789
two (2) representatives from the Election Commissioners 790
Association of Mississippi, appointed by the association; one (1) 791
member of the Mississippi Association of Supervisors, or its 792
staff, appointed by the association; the Director of the Stennis 793
Institute of Government at Mississippi State University, or his or 794
her designee; the Executive Director of the Department of 795
Information Technology Services, or his or her designee; two (2) 796
persons knowledgeable about elections and information technology 797
appointed by the Secretary of State; and the Secretary of State, 798
who shall serve as the chair of the advisory committee. 799
(6) (a) Social security numbers, telephone numbers, email 800
addresses, and date of birth and age information in statewide, 801
district, county and municipal voter registration files shall be 802
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exempt from and shall not be subject to inspection, examination, 803
copying or reproduction under the Mississippi Public Records Act 804
of 1983. 805
(b) Copies of statewide, district, county or municipal 806
voter registration files, excluding social security numbers, 807
telephone numbers, email addresses, and date of birth and age 808
information, shall be provided to any person in accordance with 809
the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983 at a cost not to exceed 810
the actual cost of production. 811
SECTION 12. Section 47-7-31, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 812
amended as follows: 813
47-7-31. (1) Upon request of the Governor, the Department 814
of Corrections shall investigate and report to him with respect to 815
any case of pardon, commutation of sentence, reprieve, furlough or 816
remission of fine or forfeiture. 817
(2) At least once each quarter, the department shall 818
investigate and report in writing to the Governor the names of 819
those persons either in the department's custody or discharged 820
from the department's custody who should be considered for a 821
pardon, commutation of sentence, reprieve, furlough or remission 822
of fine or forfeiture. 823
(3) Any attorney of record in the State of Mississippi 824
representing any person whose record is before the department 825
shall have the right to inspect such records on file with the 826
department. 827
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SECTION 13. Section 47-7-41, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 828
amended as follows: 829
47-7-41. When a probationer shall be discharged from 830
probation by the court of original jurisdiction, the field 831
supervisor * * * shall automatically forward a written report of 832
the record of the probationer to the Division of Community 833
Corrections of the department, which shall present a copy of this 834
report to the Governor. The Governor may, in his discretion, at 835
any time thereafter by appropriate executive order restore any 836
civil rights, including any right of suffrage, lost by the 837
probationer by virtue of his conviction or plea of guilty in the 838
court of original jurisdiction. 839
SECTION 14. Section 47-5-157, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 840
amended as follows: 841
47-5-157. (1) (a) When an offender is entitled to a 842
discharge from the custody of the department, or is released 843
therefrom on parole, pardon, or otherwise, the commissioner or his 844
designee shall prepare and deliver to him a written discharge or 845
release, as the case may be, dated and signed by him with seal 846
annexed, giving the offender's name, the name of the offense or 847
offenses for which he was convicted, the term of sentence imposed 848
and the date thereof, the county in which he was sentenced, the 849
amount of commutation received, if any, the trade he has learned, 850
if any, his proficiency in same, and such description of the 851
offender as may be practicable and the discharge plan developed as 852
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required by law. At least fifteen (15) days prior to the release 853
of an offender as described herein, the director of records of the 854
department shall give the written notice which is required 855
pursuant to Section 47-5-177. 856
(b) Additionally, the department shall automatically 857
forward a copy of the written discharge or release to the 858
Governor. The Governor may, in his discretion, at any time 859
thereafter by appropriate executive order, restore any civil 860
rights, including any right of suffrage, lost by the person by 861
virtue of his or her conviction or plea of guilty in the court of 862
original jurisdiction. 863
(2) The offender shall be furnished: 864
(a) A Mississippi driver's license, if eligible; 865
(b) A provisional license under Section 63-1-305; or 866
(c) A state identification card that is not a 867
department-issued identification card. 868
The offender shall also be furnished all money held to his 869
credit by any official of the correctional system and, if needed, 870
suitable civilian clothes. 871
(3) The amount of money which an offender is entitled to 872
receive from the State of Mississippi when he is discharged from 873
the state correctional system shall be determined as follows: 874
(a) If he has continuously served his sentence in one 875
(1) year or less flat time, he shall be given Fifteen Dollars 876
($15.00). 877
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(b) If he has served his sentence in more than one (1) 878
year flat time and in less than ten (10) years flat time, he shall 879
be given Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00). 880
(c) If he has continuously served his sentence in ten 881
(10) or more years flat time, he shall be given Seventy-five 882
Dollars ($75.00). 883
(d) If he has continuously served his sentence in 884
twenty (20) or more years flat time, he shall be given One Hundred 885
Dollars ($100.00). 886
(e) There shall be given in addition to the above 887
specified monies in paragraphs (a), (b), (c) and (d) of this 888
subsection, a bus ticket to the county of conviction or to a state 889
line of Mississippi. 890
SECTION 15. Upon petition therefor, a justice, county, 891
circuit or municipal court shall expunge the record of any such 892
conviction from all public records in any case in which a full 893
pardon was made by the Governor. 894
SECTION 16. This act shall take effect and be in force from 895
and after July 1, 2026. 896