MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2019 Regular Session
To: Elections; Accountability, Efficiency, Transparency
By: Senator(s) Jolly
AN ACT TO ABOLISH PARTISAN PRIMARIES; TO PROVIDE THE TIME FOR HOLDING GENERAL AND PREFERENTIAL ELECTIONS; TO PROVIDE THAT WHEN ONLY ONE PERSON HAS QUALIFIED AS A CANDIDATE FOR AN OFFICE, SUCH PERSON'S NAME SHALL BE PLACED ON THE GENERAL ELECTION BALLOT; TO PROVIDE THAT A PREFERENTIAL ELECTION SHALL BE HELD THREE WEEKS BEFORE THE GENERAL ELECTION AND THE CANDIDATE WHO RECEIVES A MAJORITY OF THE VOTES CAST FOR SUCH OFFICE SHALL HAVE HIS NAME AND HIS NAME ONLY PLACED ON THE GENERAL ELECTION BALLOT; TO PROVIDE THAT WHEN NO CANDIDATE RECEIVES A MAJORITY OF THE VOTES CAST IN THE PREFERENTIAL ELECTION FOR AN OFFICE, THAT THE TWO CANDIDATES WHO RECEIVE THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF VOTES IN THE PREFERENTIAL ELECTION SHALL HAVE THEIR NAMES PLACED ON THE GENERAL ELECTION BALLOT AS CANDIDATES FOR SUCH OFFICE; TO PROVIDE THE PROCEDURE TO FOLLOW IN CASE OF TIES; TO PROVIDE THE MANNER FOR QUALIFYING AS A CANDIDATE FOR PUBLIC OFFICE; TO PROVIDE FOR THE PRINTING OF NECESSARY BALLOTS; TO AMEND SECTIONS 21-7-7, 21-8-7, 21-15-1, 23-15-21, 23-15-31, 23-15-129, 23-15-153, 23-15-173, 23-15-197, 23-15-313, 23-15-367, 23-15-375, 23-15-403, 23-15-411, 23-15-463, 23-15-465, 23-15-507, 23-15-511, 23-15-559, 23-15-561, 23-15-573, 23-15-593, 23-15-595, 23-15-601, 23-15-605, 23-15-673, 23-15-713, 23-15-755, 23-15-771, 23-15-801, 23-15-807, 23-15-811, 23-15-833, 23-15-859, 23-15-873, 23-15-881, 23-15-885, 23-15-891, 23-15-899, 23-15-911, 23-15-973, 23-15-1065, 23-15-1085 AND 23-15-1087, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, IN CONFORMITY THERETO; TO REPEAL SECTION 23-15-171, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDES FOR THE DATES OF MUNICIPAL PRIMARY ELECTIONS; TO REPEAL SECTION 23-15-191, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDES FOR THE DATE OF STATE, DISTRICT AND COUNTY PRIMARY ELECTIONS; TO REPEAL SECTIONS 23-15-263, 23-15-265, 23-15-267, 23-15-291 THROUGH 23-15-311, 23-15-317, 23-15-319, 23-15-331, 23-15-333 AND 23-15-335, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDE FOR THE DUTIES OF THE STATE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE AND COUNTY EXECUTIVE COMMITTEES IN PRIMARY ELECTIONS, PROVIDE FOR THE QUALIFICATION OF CANDIDATES FOR PARTY PRIMARY ELECTIONS, AND PROVIDE FOR THE CONDUCT OF PARTY PRIMARY ELECTIONS; TO REPEAL SECTIONS 23-15-359, 23-15-361 AND 23-15-363, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDE FOR THE CONTENTS OF GENERAL ELECTION BALLOTS; TO REPEAL SECTIONS 23-15-597 AND 23-15-599, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDE FOR THE CANVASS OF RETURNS AND ANNOUNCEMENT OF VOTE BY THE COUNTY EXECUTIVE COMMITTEES IN PRIMARY ELECTIONS AND REQUIRE THE STATE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE TO TRANSMIT TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE A TABULATED STATEMENT OF THE PARTY VOTE FOR CERTAIN OFFICES; TO REPEAL SECTIONS 23-15-921 THROUGH 23-15-941, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDE PROCEDURES FOR CONTESTS OF PRIMARY ELECTIONS; TO REPEAL SECTION 23-15-1031, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDES FOR THE DATE OF PRIMARY ELECTIONS FOR CONGRESSMEN AND UNITED STATES SENATORS; TO REPEAL SECTION 23-15-1063, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROHIBITS UNREGISTERED POLITICAL PARTIES FROM CONDUCTING PRIMARY ELECTIONS; TO REPEAL SECTION 23-15-1083, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH REQUIRES THAT CERTAIN CONGRESSIONAL PRIMARIES BE HELD ON THE SAME DAY AS THE PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCE PRIMARY; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. (1) For purposes of this act, the following words shall have the meaning ascribed herein unless the context shall otherwise require:
(a) "Preferential election" shall mean a primary election held for the purpose of determining those candidates whose names will be placed on the general or regular election ballot. Any person who meets the qualifications to hold the office he seeks may be a candidate in the preferential election without regard to party affiliation or lack of party affiliation.
(b) "General election" or "regular election" shall mean an election held for the purpose of determining which candidate shall be elected to office.
(c) "Political party" shall mean a party defined as a political party by the provisions of Sections 23-15-1059 and 23-15-1061, Mississippi Code of 1972.
(2) All qualified electors of the State of Mississippi may participate, without regard to party affiliation or lack of party affiliation, in any appropriate preferential, general or regular election.
SECTION 2. The general election in 2020 and every general election thereafter shall be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of November of the year. When more than one (1) person has qualified or been certified as a candidate for any office, a preferential election for such office shall be held three (3) weeks before the general election.
SECTION 3. A person who has qualified in the manner provided by law as a candidate for election under Sections 1 through 11 of this act shall have the right to withdraw his name as a candidate by giving notice of the withdrawal in writing to the secretary of the appropriate election commission at any time before the printing of the official ballots, and in the event of his withdrawal, the name of such candidate shall not be printed on the ballot.
SECTION 4. When only one (1) person has qualified or been certified as a candidate for any office, such person's name shall be placed only on the general or regular election ballot and shall not be placed on the ballot for a preferential election.
SECTION 5. When more than one (1) person has qualified or been certified as a candidate for any office, a preferential election for such office shall be held three (3) weeks before the general or regular election, and any candidate who receives a majority of the votes cast in such preferential election shall have his name, and his name only, placed on the ballot in the general or regular election. Except as provided in Section 6 of this act, if no person shall receive a majority of the votes cast at such preferential election, then the two (2) persons receiving the highest number of votes in the preferential election shall have their names placed on the ballot in the general or regular election as candidates for such office.
SECTION 6. (1) When there is a tie in the preferential election between the candidates receiving the highest number of votes, then only those candidates shall be placed on the ballot as candidates in the general election.
(2) When there is a tie in the preferential election between the candidates receiving the next highest number of votes, and there is not a tie for the highest number of votes, candidates receiving the next highest number of votes, and the one candidate receiving the highest number of votes, no one having received a majority, shall have their names placed on the ballot as candidates in the general or regular election.
(3) If (a) there are more than two (2) candidates in the preferential election, and (b) no candidate in such election receives a majority of the votes cast at such preferential election, and (c) there is not a tie in such preferential election that would require the procedure prescribed in subsection (2) of this section to be followed, and (d) one (1) of the two (2) candidates who receives the highest number of votes in such preferential election withdraws or is otherwise unable to participate in the general or regular election, then the remaining candidate of such two (2) candidates and the candidate who receives the third highest number of votes in such election shall be placed on the ballot as candidates in the general or regular election.
SECTION 7. All candidates receiving the highest number of votes for any office in the general or regular election shall thereby be declared elected to such office, subject to the requirements of Sections 140, 141 and 143, Mississippi Constitution of 1890.
SECTION 8. All candidates upon entering the race for election to any office, except municipal offices, shall file by 5:00 p.m. no later than sixty (60) days before the general election their intent to be a candidate and pay to the secretary of the proper executive committee of their political party or the appropriate election commission for each election the following amounts:
(a) Candidates for Governor, One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00).
(b) Candidates for Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of State, State Treasurer, Auditor of Public Accounts, Commissioner of Insurance, Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce, State Highway Commissioner and State Public Service Commissioner, Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00).
(c) Candidates for district attorney, State Senator and State Representative, Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00).
(d) Candidates for sheriff, chancery clerk, circuit clerk, tax assessor, tax collector, county attorney, county superintendent of education and board of supervisors, One Hundred Dollars ($100.00).
(e) Candidates for county surveyor, county coroner, justice court judge and constable, One Hundred Dollars ($100.00).
(f) Candidates for United States Senator, One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00).
(g) Candidates for United States Representative, Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00).
SECTION 9. (1) Candidates for offices set out in Section 8(a), (b), (c), (f) and (g) of this act shall file their intent to be a candidate with the secretary of the state executive committee of the political party with which the candidate is affiliated or with the secretary of the state election commission if not affiliated with a political party.
(2) Candidates for offices set out in Section 8(d) and (e) of this act shall file their intent to be a candidate with the secretary of the county executive committee of the political party with which the candidate is affiliated, or with the county election commission if not affiliated with a political party.
Not later than fifty-five (55) days before the general election, the respective executive committee shall certify to the appropriate election commission all candidates who have filed their intent to be a candidate.
(3) (a) The fees required to be paid pursuant to Section 8 of this act shall be accompanied by a written statement containing the name and address of the candidate, the party with which he or she is affiliated and the office for which he or she is a candidate.
(b) The appropriate executive committee or election commission, as the case may be, shall transmit to the Secretary of State a copy of the written statements accompanying the fees paid pursuant to subsections (1) and (2) of this section. All copies must be received by the Office of the Secretary of State by not later than 6:00 p.m. on the date of the qualifying deadline; provided, however, the failure of the Office of the Secretary of State to receive such copies by 6:00 p.m. on the date of the qualifying deadline shall not affect the qualification of a person who pays the required fee and files the required statement by 5:00 p.m. not later than sixty (60) days before the general election. The name of any person who pays the required fee and files the required statement after 5:00 p.m. on the date of the qualifying deadline shall not be placed on the preferential primary election ballot.
(4) The secretary to whom such payments are made shall promptly receipt for same stating the office for which such candidate making payment is running and the political party with which he or she is affiliated, and he or she shall keep an itemized account in detail showing the exact time and date of the receipt of each payment received by him or her and, where applicable, the date of the postmark on the envelope containing the fee and from whom, and for what office the party paying same is a candidate.
(5) The secretaries of the proper executive committee shall hold the funds to be finally disposed of by order of their respective executive committees. The funds may be used or disbursed by the executive committee receiving same to pay all necessary traveling or other necessary expenses of the members of the executive committee incurred in discharging their duties as committeemen, and of their secretary and may pay the secretary such salary as may be reasonable.
(6) Upon receipt of the proper fee and all necessary information, the proper executive committee shall then determine whether each candidate is a qualified elector of the state, state district, county or county district which they seek to serve, and whether each candidate meets all other qualifications to hold the office he is seeking or presents absolute proof that he will, subject to no contingencies, meet all qualifications on or before the date of the general or special election at which he could be elected to office. The executive committee shall determine whether the candidate has taken the steps necessary to qualify for more than one (1) office at the election. The committee also shall determine whether any candidate has been convicted of any felony in a court of this state, or has been convicted of any offense in another state which is a felony under the laws of this state, or has been convicted of any felony in a federal court. Excepted from the above are convictions of manslaughter and violations of the United States Internal Revenue Code or any violations of the tax laws of this state unless the offense also involved misuse or abuse of his office or money coming into his hands by virtue of his office. If the proper executive committee finds that a candidate either (a) is not a qualified elector, (b) does not meet all qualifications to hold the office he seeks and fails to provide absolute proof, subject to no contingencies, that he will meet the qualifications on or before the date of the general or special election at which he could be elected, or (c) has been convicted of a felony as described in this subsection, and not pardoned, then the name of such candidate shall not be placed upon the ballot. If the proper executive committee determines that the candidate has taken the steps necessary to qualify for more than one (1) office at the election, the action required by Section 23-15-905, shall be taken.
Where there is but one (1) candidate for each office contested at the preferential primary election, the proper executive committee when the time has expired within which the names of candidates shall be furnished shall declare such candidates the nominees.
(7) No candidate may qualify by filing the information required by this section by using the Internet.
SECTION 10. (1) Necessary ballots for use in elections shall be printed as provided for in Section 23-15-351, Mississippi Code of 1972. The ballots shall contain the names of all candidates who have filed their intention to be a candidate in the manner and within the time prescribed herein. Such names shall be listed alphabetically on the ballot without regard to party affiliation, if any, with indication of the political party, if any, with which such candidate qualified and placed in parentheses following the name of the candidate.
(2) The county election commissioners may also have printed upon the ballot any local issue election matter that is authorized to be held on the same date as the general election pursuant to Section 23-15-375, Mississippi Code of 1972; provided, however, that the ballot form of such local issue must be filed with the election commissioners by the appropriate governing authority not less than sixty (60) days prior to the election.
SECTION 11. (1) All candidates upon entering the race for election to any municipal office shall, not later than 5:00 p.m. sixty (60) days prior to any municipal general or regular election, file their intent to be a candidate and pay to the secretary of the municipal executive committee of their political party or to the municipal election commission for each election the amount of Ten Dollars ($10.00).
(2) Candidates for municipal office shall file their intent to be a candidate with the secretary of the municipal executive committee of the political party with which the candidate is affiliated, or with the secretary of the municipal election commission if not affiliated with a political party.
(3) Such election shall be held on the date provided for in Section 23-15-173, Mississippi Code of 1972; and if a preferential election shall be necessary, such preferential election shall be held three (3) weeks before the general or regular municipal election. At such election, or elections, the municipal election commissioners shall perform the same duties as are specified by law and performed by the county election commissioners with regard to state and county general and preferential elections. Except as otherwise provided by law, all municipal elections shall be held and conducted as is provided by law for state and county elections.
(4) Provided, however, that in municipalities operating under a special or private charter which fixes a time for holding elections other than the time fixed herein, the preferential election shall be three (3) weeks before the general election as fixed by the charter.
(5) Not later than fifty-five (55) days before the general election, the respective municipal executive committees shall certify to the municipal election commission all candidates who have filed, within the time prescribed in this section, with such executive committees their intent to be a candidate.
SECTION 12. Sections 1 through 11 of this act shall apply to all elections to public office, except elections for judicial office as defined in Section 23-15-975, Mississippi Code of 1972, and special elections.
SECTION 13. Nothing in Sections 1 through 11 of this act shall prohibit special elections to fill vacancies in either house of the Legislature from being held as provided in Section 23-15-851, Mississippi Code of 1972. In all elections conducted under the provisions of Section 23-15-851, Mississippi Code of 1972, the commissioners shall have printed on the ballot the name of any candidate who shall have been requested to be a candidate for the office by a petition filed with said commissioners not less than ten (10) working days before the election and signed by not less than fifty (50) qualified electors.
SECTION 14. The state executive committee of a political party is hereby authorized to make and promulgate reasonable rules and regulations for the affairs of such political party and may authorize the county executive committee of such party to have a new registration of the members of that party.
SECTION 15. It shall be the duty of the state executive committee of each political party to furnish to the election commissioners of each county the names of all state and state district candidates who have qualified as provided in Sections 8 and 9 of this act.
SECTION 16. The chairmen of the state and county election commissioners, respectively, shall transmit to the Secretary of State a tabulated statement of the vote cast in each county in each state and district election, which statement shall be filed by the Secretary of State and preserved among the records of his office.
SECTION 17. Candidates for the offices of Public Service Commissioner, State Highway Commissioner, any other officers elected from each Supreme Court district, representatives in Congress, district attorneys and any other offices elected by districts, shall be voted for by all the counties within their respective districts, and all district candidates, shall be under the supervision and control of the state election commissioners. The commissioners shall discharge, for such state district elections, all the powers and duties imposed upon them in connection with elections of candidates for other state offices.
SECTION 18. Section 21-7-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
21-7-7. The governing body
of any such municipality shall be a council, known and designated as such,
consisting of seven (7) members. One (1) of the members shall be
the mayor, having the qualifications as prescribed by Section 21-3-9, who shall
have full rights, powers and privileges of other councilmen. The mayor shall
be nominated and elected at large; the remaining councilmen shall be nominated
and elected one (1) from each ward into which the city shall be
divided. However, if the city * * * is divided into less than six (6)
wards, the remaining councilmen shall be nominated and elected at large. The
councilmen, including the mayor, shall be elected for a term of four (4)
years to serve until their successors are elected and qualified in accordance
with the provisions of Section * * * 11 of this act, said term
commencing on the first Monday of January after the municipal election first
following the adoption of the form of government as provided by this chapter.
The compensation for the
members of the council shall, for the first four (4) years of operation,
under this chapter, be fixed by the * * * mayor and board of aldermen
holding office prior to the change in form of government. Thereafter,
the amount of compensation for each * * * member may be increased or decreased by
the council, by council action taken prior to the election of members thereof
for the ensuing term, such action to become effective with the ensuing terms.
SECTION 19. Section 21-8-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
21-8-7. (1) Each municipality operating under the mayor-council form of government shall be governed by an elected council and an elected mayor. Other officers and employees shall be duly appointed pursuant to this chapter, general law or ordinance.
(2) Except as otherwise
provided in subsection (4) of this section, the mayor and council members shall
be elected by the voters of the municipality at a regular municipal election
held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in June as provided in Section * * * 11 of this act, and shall serve
for a term of four (4) years beginning on the first day of July next following
the election that is not on a weekend.
(3) The terms of the initial mayor and council members shall commence at the expiration of the terms of office of the elected officials of the municipality serving at the time of adoption of the mayor-council form of government.
(4) (a) The council shall
consist of five (5), seven (7) or nine (9) members. In the event there are
five (5) council members, the municipality shall be divided into either five
(5) or four (4) wards. In the event there are seven (7) council members, the
municipality shall be divided into either seven (7), six (6) or five (5)
wards. In the event there are nine (9) council members, the municipality shall
be divided into seven (7) or nine (9) wards. If the municipality is divided
into fewer wards than it has council members, the other council member or
members shall be elected from the municipality at large. The total number of
council members and the number of council members elected from wards shall be
established by the petition or petitions presented pursuant to Section 21-8-3.
One (1) council member shall be elected from each ward by the voters of that
ward. Council members elected to represent wards must be residents of their wards
at the time of qualification for election, and any council member who removes
the member's residence from the municipality or from the ward from which
elected shall vacate that office. However, any candidate for council member
who is properly qualified as a candidate under applicable law shall be deemed
to be qualified as a candidate in whatever ward the member resides if the ward
has changed after the council has redistricted the municipality as provided in
paragraph (c)(ii) of this subsection (4), and if the wards have been so
changed, any person may qualify as a candidate for council member, using the
person's existing residence or by changing the person's residence, not less
than fifteen (15) days before the * * * preferential election
or special party primary, as the case may be, notwithstanding any other
residency or qualification requirements to the contrary.
(b) The council or board existing at the time of the adoption of the mayor-council form of government shall designate the geographical boundaries of the wards within one hundred twenty (120) days after the election in which the mayor-council form of government is selected. In designating the geographical boundaries of the wards, each ward shall contain, as nearly as possible, the population factor obtained by dividing the municipality's population as shown by the most recent decennial census by the number of wards into which the municipality is to be divided.
(c) (i) It shall be
the mandatory duty of the council to redistrict the municipality by ordinance,
which ordinance may not be vetoed by the mayor, within six (6) months after the
official publication by the United States of the population of the municipality
as enumerated in each decennial census, and within six (6) months after the
effective date of any expansion of municipal boundaries; however, if the
publication of the most recent decennial census or effective date of an
expansion of the municipal boundaries occurs six (6) months or more before the * * *
preferential election in a municipality, then the council shall
redistrict the municipality by ordinance not less than sixty (60) days before
the * * * preferential election.
(ii) If the publication
of the most recent decennial census occurs less than six (6) months before the * * *
preferential election in a municipality, the election shall be held with
regard to the existing defined wards; reapportioned wards based on the census
shall not serve as the basis for representation until the next regularly
scheduled election in which council members shall be elected.
(d) If annexation of
additional territory into the municipal corporate limits of the municipality
occurs less than six (6) months before the * * *
preferential election in a municipality, the council shall, by ordinance
adopted within three (3) days of the effective date of the annexation, assign
the annexed territory to an adjacent ward or wards so as to maintain as nearly
as possible substantial equality of population between wards; any subsequent
redistricting of the municipality by ordinance, as required by this
chapter, shall not serve as the basis for representation until the next
regularly scheduled election for municipal council members.
(5) Vacancies occurring in the council shall be filled as provided in Section 23-15-857.
(6) The mayor shall maintain an office at the city hall. The council members shall not maintain individual offices at the city hall; however, in a municipality having a population of one hundred thousand (100,000) and above according to the latest federal decennial census, council members may have individual offices in the city hall. Clerical work of council members in the performance of the duties of their office shall be performed by municipal employees or at municipal expense, and council members shall be reimbursed for the reasonable expenses incurred in the performance of the duties of their office.
SECTION 20. Section 21-15-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
21-15-1. All officers
elected at the general or regular municipal election provided for in
Section * * *
11 of this act, shall qualify and enter upon the discharge of their
duties on the first day of July after such general election that is not on a
weekend, and shall hold their offices for a term of four (4) years and until
their successors are duly elected and qualified.
SECTION 21. Section 23-15-21, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-21. It shall be
unlawful for any person who is not a citizen of the United States or the State
of Mississippi to register or to vote in any * * * special, preferential or general
election in the state.
SECTION 22. Section 23-15-31, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-31. All of the
provisions of this * * * section shall be applicable, insofar as possible,
to municipal, * * *
preferential, general and special elections; and wherever therein any
duty is imposed or any power or authority is conferred upon the county
registrar * * *
or county election commissioners * * * with reference
to a state and county election, * * * the duty shall likewise be conferred
upon the municipal registrar * * * or municipal election commission * * * with
reference to any municipal election.
SECTION 23. Section 23-15-129, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-129. The
commissioners of election and the registrars of the respective counties are
hereby directed to make an administrative division of the pollbook for each
county immediately following any reapportionment of the Mississippi Legislature
or any realignment of supervisors districts, if necessary. * * * The administrative division
shall form subprecincts whenever necessary within each voting precinct so that
all persons within a subprecinct shall vote on the same candidates for each
public office. The polling place for all subprecincts within any given voting
precinct shall be the same as the polling place for the voting precinct.
Additional managers may be appointed for subprecincts in the discretion of the
commissioners of election * * * or, in the case of primary elections, in the discretion of the proper
executive committee.
SECTION 24. Section 23-15-153, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-153. (1) * * * The
election commissioners shall meet at the office of the registrar or the office
of the election commissioners to carefully revise the county voter roll as
electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System and
remove from the roll the names of all voters who have requested to be purged
from the voter roll, died, received an adjudication of non compos mentis, been
convicted of a disenfranchising crime, or otherwise become disqualified as
electors for any cause, and shall register the names of all persons who have
duly applied to be registered but have been illegally denied registration at
least during the following times:
(a) On the Tuesday after the second Monday in January 1987 and every following year;
(b) On the first
Tuesday in the month immediately preceding the first * * * preferential election for
members of Congress in the years when members of Congress are elected;
(c) On the first
Monday in the month immediately preceding the first * * * preferential election for state,
state district legislative, county and county district offices in the years in
which those offices are elected; and
(d) On the second Monday of September preceding the general election or regular special election day in years in which a general election is not conducted.
Except for the names of those voters who are duly qualified to vote in the election, no name shall be permitted to remain in the Statewide Elections Management System; however, no name shall be purged from the Statewide Elections Management System based on a change in the residence of an elector except in accordance with procedures provided for by the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. Except as otherwise provided by Section 23-15-573, no person shall vote at any election whose name is not in the county voter roll electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System.
(2) Except as provided in this section, and subject to the following annual limitations, the election commissioners shall be entitled to receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Dollars ($100.00), to be paid from the county general fund, for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the performance of their duties in the conduct of an election or actually employed in the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System as required in subsection (1) of this section:
(a) In counties having less than fifteen thousand (15,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than fifty (50) days per year, with no more than fifteen (15) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(b) In counties having fifteen thousand (15,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than thirty thousand (30,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than seventy-five (75) days per year, with no more than twenty-five (25) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(c) In counties having thirty thousand (30,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than seventy thousand (70,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred (100) days per year, with no more than thirty-five (35) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (l) occurring in any calendar year;
(d) In counties having seventy thousand (70,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than ninety thousand (90,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred twenty-five (125) days per year, with no more than forty-five (45) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(e) In counties having ninety thousand (90,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than one hundred seventy thousand (170,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred fifty (150) days per year, with no more than fifty-five (55) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(f) In counties having one hundred seventy thousand (170,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than two hundred thousand (200,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred seventy-five (175) days per year, with no more than sixty-five (65) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(g) In counties having two hundred thousand (200,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than two hundred twenty-five thousand (225,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred ninety (190) days per year, with no more than seventy-five (75) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (l) occurring in any calendar year;
(h) In counties having two hundred twenty-five thousand (225,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than two hundred fifty thousand (250,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than two hundred fifteen (215) days per year, with no more than eighty-five (85) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(i) In counties having two hundred fifty thousand (250,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census but less than two hundred seventy-five thousand (275,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than two hundred thirty (230) days per year, with no more than ninety-five (95) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year;
(j) In counties having two hundred seventy-five thousand (275,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial census or more, not more than two hundred forty (240) days per year, with no more than one hundred five (105) additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (l) occurring in any calendar year.
(3) In addition to the
number of days authorized in subsection (2) of this section, the board of
supervisors of a county may authorize, in its discretion, the election
commissioners to receive a per diem in the amount provided for in subsection
(2) of this section, to be paid from the county general fund, for every day or
period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated over two (2) or more days
actually employed in the performance of their duties in the conduct of an
election or actually employed in the performance of their duties for the
necessary time spent in the revision of the county voter roll as electronically
maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System as required in
subsection (1) of this section, * * * not to exceed five (5) days.
(4) (a) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Dollars ($100.00), to be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed ten (10) days for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System before any special election. For purposes of this paragraph, the regular special election day shall not be considered a special election. The annual limitations set forth in subsection (2) of this section shall not apply to this paragraph.
(b) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Fifty Dollars ($150.00), to be paid from the county general fund, for the performance of their duties on the day of any general or special election. The annual limitations set forth in subsection (2) of this section shall apply to this paragraph.
(5) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Dollars ($100.00), to be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed fourteen (14) days for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System and in the conduct of a runoff election following either a general or special election.
(6) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive only one (1) per diem payment for those days when the election commissioners discharge more than one (1) duty or responsibility on the same day.
(7) In preparation for a
municipal * * *
preferential, runoff, general or special election, the county registrar
shall generate and distribute the master voter roll and pollbooks from the Statewide
Elections Management System for the municipality located within the county.
The municipality shall pay the county registrar for the actual cost of
preparing and printing the municipal master voter roll pollbooks. A
municipality may secure "read only" access to the Statewide Elections
Management System and print its own pollbooks using this information.
(8) County election
commissioners who perform the duties of an executive committee with regard to
the conduct of a * * *
preferential election under a written agreement authorized by law to be
entered into with an executive committee shall receive per diem as provided for
in subsection (2) of this section. The days that county election commissioners
are employed in the conduct of a * * * preferential election shall be
treated the same as days county election commissioners are employed in the
conduct of other elections.
(9) In addition to any per diem authorized by this section, any election commissioner shall be entitled to the mileage reimbursement rate allowable to federal employees for the use of a privately owned vehicle while on official travel on election day.
(10) Every election commissioner shall sign personally a certification setting forth the number of hours actually worked in the performance of the commissioner's official duties and for which the commissioner seeks compensation. The certification must be on a form as prescribed in this subsection. The commissioner's signature is, as a matter of law, made under the commissioner's oath of office and under penalties of perjury.
The certification form shall be as follows:
COUNTY ELECTION COMMISSIONER
PER DIEM CLAIM FORM
NAME: ____________________________ COUNTY: _______________
ADDRESS: _________________________ DISTRICT: _____________
CITY: ______________ ZIP: ________
PURPOSE APPLICABLE ACTUAL PER DIEM
DATE BEGINNING ENDING OF MS CODE HOURS DAYS
WORKED TIME TIME WORK SECTION WORKED EARNED
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
TOTAL NUMBER OF PER DIEM DAYS EARNED
EXCLUDING ELECTION DAYS ________
PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $100.00
TOTAL NUMBER PER DIEM DAYS EARNED
FOR ELECTION DAYS ________
PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $150.00
TOTAL AMOUNT OF PER DIEM CLAIMED $_______
I understand that I am signing this document under my oath as an election commissioner and under penalties of perjury.
I understand that I am requesting payment from taxpayer funds and that I have an obligation to be specific and truthful as to the amount of hours worked and the compensation I am requesting.
Signed this the _____ day of ______________, ____.
________________________
Commissioner's Signature
When properly completed and signed, the certification must be filed with the clerk of the county board of supervisors before any payment may be made. The certification will be a public record available for inspection and reproduction immediately upon the oral or written request of any person.
Any person may contest the accuracy of the certification in any respect by notifying the chair of the commission, any member of the board of supervisors or the clerk of the board of supervisors of the contest at any time before or after payment is made. If the contest is made before payment is made, no payment shall be made as to the contested certificate until the contest is finally disposed of. The person filing the contest shall be entitled to a full hearing, and the clerk of the board of supervisors shall issue subpoenas upon request of the contestor compelling the attendance of witnesses and production of documents and things. The contestor shall have the right to appeal de novo to the circuit court of the involved county, which appeal must be perfected within thirty (30) days from a final decision of the commission, the clerk of the board of supervisors or the board of supervisors, as the case may be.
Any contestor who successfully contests any certification will be awarded all expenses incident to his or her contest, together with reasonable attorney's fees, which will be awarded upon petition to the chancery court of the involved county upon final disposition of the contest before the election commission, board of supervisors, clerk of the board of supervisors, or, in case of an appeal, final disposition by the court. The commissioner against whom the contest is decided shall be liable for the payment of the expenses and attorney's fees, and the county shall be jointly and severally liable for same.
(11) Any election commissioner who has not received a certificate issued by the Secretary of State pursuant to Section 23-15-211 indicating that the election commissioner has received the required elections seminar instruction and that the election commissioner is fully qualified to conduct an election, shall not receive any compensation authorized by this section or Section 23-15-239.
SECTION 25. Section 23-15-173, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-173. (1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, the preferential election shall be held three (3) weeks before the general or regular municipal election if a preferential election is necessary. A general municipal election shall be held in each city, town or village on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of June 1985, and every four (4) years thereafter, for the election of all municipal officers elected by the people.
* * *
( * * *2) The provisions of * * * this section
shall not apply to any municipality operating under a special or private
charter where the governing board or authority thereof, on or before June 25,
1952, * * *
adopted and spread upon its minutes a resolution or ordinance declining to
accept the provisions * * *. For each such special or
private charter municipality, the general election shall be held at the time
fixed by the charter of the municipality, and the preferential election shall
be three (3) weeks before the general election as fixed by the charter.
(3) Except as otherwise provided by law, all municipal general elections shall be held and conducted in the same manner as is provided by law for state and county general elections.
SECTION 26. Section 23-15-197, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-197. (1) Times for
holding * * *
general elections for congressional offices shall be as prescribed in Sections * * * 23-15-1033 and 23-15-1041.
(2) Times for holding elections for the office of judge of the Supreme Court shall be as prescribed in Section 23-15-991 and Sections 23-15-974 through 23-15-985, and times for holding elections for the office of judge of the Court of Appeals shall be as prescribed in Section 9-4-5.
(3) Times for holding elections for the office of circuit court judge and the office of chancery court judge shall be as prescribed in Sections 23-15-974 through 23-15-985, and Section 23-15-1015.
(4) Times for holding elections for the office of county election commissioners shall be as prescribed in Section 23-15-213.
(5) Times for holding elections for the office of levee commissioner shall be as prescribed in Chapter 12, Laws of 1928; Chapter 574, Laws of 1968; Chapter 85, Laws of 1930; Chapter 317, Laws of 1983; and Chapter 438, Laws of 2010.
SECTION 27. Section 23-15-313, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-313. (1) If there be
any political party, or parties, in any municipality which shall not have a
party executive committee for * * * the municipality, * * * the political party, or parties,
shall within thirty (30) days of the date for which a candidate for a municipal
office is required to qualify in that municipality select qualified electors of
that municipality and of that party's political faith to serve on a temporary
municipal executive committee until members of a municipal executive committee
are elected at the next regular election for executive committees. The
temporary municipal executive committee shall be selected in the following
manner: The chairman of the county executive committee of the party desiring
to select a temporary municipal executive committee shall call, upon petition
of five (5) or more members of that political faith, a mass meeting of the
qualified electors of their political faith who reside in * * * the municipality to meet at some
convenient place within * * *such the municipality, at a time to be designated in
the call * * *.
At * * * the
mass convention, the members of that political faith shall select a
temporary municipal executive committee which shall serve until members of a
municipal executive committee are elected at the next regular election for
executive committees. The public shall be given notice of * * * the mass meeting as provided in
Section 23-15-315. The chairman of the county executive committee shall
authorize the call within five (5) calendar days of receipt of the petition.
If the chairman of the county executive committee is either incapacitated,
unavailable or nonresponsive and does not authorize the mass call within five
(5) calendar days of receipt of the petition, any elected officer of the county
executive committee may authorize the call within five (5) calendar days. If
no elected officer of the county executive committee acts to approve such
petition after an additional five (5) calendar days from the date, the chair of
the county executive committee not taking action as provided by this section,
the petitioners shall be authorized to produce the call themselves.
(2) If no municipal executive committee is selected or otherwise formed before an election, the county executive committee may serve as the temporary municipal executive committee and exercise all of the duties of the municipal executive committee for the municipal election. After a county executive committee has fulfilled its duties as the temporary municipal executive committee, as soon as practicable thereafter, the county executive committee shall select a municipal executive committee no later than before the next municipal election.
(3) A person who has been
convicted of a felony in a court of this state or any other state or a court of
the United States * * *
shall be barred from serving as a member of a municipal executive committee.
SECTION 28. Section 23-15-367, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-367. (1) Except as
otherwise provided by * * * subsection (2) of this section, the
size, print and quality of paper of the official ballot is left to the
discretion of the officer charged with printing the official ballot.
(2) The titles for the various offices shall be listed in the following order:
(a) Candidates, electors or delegates for the following national offices:
(i) President;
(ii) United States Senator or United States Representative;
(b) Candidates for the following statewide office: Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, State Treasurer, Auditor of Public Accounts, Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce, Commissioner of Insurance;
(c) Candidates for the following state district offices: Mississippi Transportation Commissioner, Public Service Commissioner, District Attorney;
(d) Candidates for the following legislative offices: Senate and House of Representatives;
(e) Candidates for countywide office;
(f) Candidates for county district office.
The order in which the
titles for the various offices are listed within paragraphs (e) and (f) is left
to the discretion of the county election commissioners. * * * When there is
more than one (1) candidate for an office, the names shall be listed * * * alphabetically by the candidate's last
name * * *.
(3) It is the duty of the
Secretary of State, with the approval of the Governor, to furnish the * * * election * * * commission of each county a
sample of the official ballot, not less than * * * fifty (50) days before
the election, the general form of which shall be followed as nearly as
practicable.
SECTION 29. Section 23-15-375, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-375. Local issue
elections may be held on the same date as any regular or general election. A
local issue election held on the same date as the regular or general election
shall be conducted in the same manner as the regular or general election using
the same poll workers and the same equipment. A local issue may be placed on
the regular or general election ballot pursuant to the provisions of Section * * * 10 of this act. The provisions
of this section and Section * * * 10 of this act with regard to
local issue elections shall not be construed to affect any statutory
requirements specifying the notice procedure and the necessary percentage of
qualified electors voting in such an election which is needed for adoption of
the local issue. Whether or not a local issue is adopted or defeated at a
local issue election held on the same day as a regular or general election
shall be determined in accordance with relevant statutory requirements
regarding the necessary percentage of qualified electors who voted in the local
issue election, and only those persons voting for or against the issue shall be
counted in making that determination. As used in this section "local issue
elections" include elections regarding the issuance of bonds, local option
elections, elections regarding the levy of additional ad valorem taxes and
other similar elections authorized by law that are called to consider issues
that affect a single local governmental entity. As used in this section
"local issue" means any issue that may be voted on in a local issue
election.
SECTION 30. Section 23-15-403, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-403. The board of
supervisors of any county in the State of Mississippi and the governing
authorities of any municipality in the State of Mississippi are hereby
authorized and empowered, in their discretion, to purchase or rent any voting
machine or machines which shall be so constructed as to fulfill the following
requirements: It shall secure to the voter secrecy in the act of voting; it
shall provide facilities for voting for all candidates of as many political
parties or organizations * * *as may make nominations that are registered in the state,
and for or against as many questions as submitted; * * * it shall permit the voter to vote for as
many persons for an office as he is lawfully entitled to vote for, but not
more; it shall prevent the voter from voting for the same person more than once
for the same office; it shall permit the voter to vote for or against any
question he may have the right to vote on, but no other; * * * it shall be so
equipped that the election officials can lock out all rows except those of the
voter's party by a single adjustment on the outside of the machine; it shall
correctly register or record and accurately count all votes cast for any and
all persons and for or against any and all questions; it shall be provided with
a "protective counter" or "protective device" whereby any
operation of the machine before or after the election will be detected; it
shall be provided with a counter which shall show at all times during an
election how many persons have voted; it shall be provided with a mechanical
model, illustrating the manner of voting on the machine, suitable for the
instruction of voters; it may also be provided with one (1) device for each
party, for voting for all the presidential electors of that party by one (1)
operation, and a ballot therefor containing only the words "Presidential
Electors For" preceded by the name of that party and followed by the names
of the candidates thereof for the offices of President and Vice President, and
a registering device therefor which shall register the vote cast for said
electors when thus voted collectively; provided, however, that means shall be
furnished whereby the voter can cast a vote for individual electors when
permitted to do so by law.
SECTION 31. Section 23-15-411, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-411. The officer who
furnishes the official ballots for any polling place where a voting machine is
to be used, shall also provide two (2) sample ballots or instruction ballots,
which sample or instruction ballots shall be arranged in the form of a diagram
showing such portion of the front of the voting machine as it will appear after
the official ballots are arranged thereon or therein for voting on election
day. * * * The
sample ballots shall be open to the inspection of all voters on election day,
in all * * *
preferential and general or regular elections where voting
machines are used.
SECTION 32. Section 23-15-463, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-463. The board of
supervisors of any county in the State of Mississippi and the governing
authorities of any municipality in the State of Mississippi are * * * authorized and empowered, in their
discretion, to purchase or rent voting devices and automatic tabulating
equipment used in an electronic voting system which meets the requirements of
Section 23-15-465, and may use such system in all or a part of the precincts
within its boundaries, or in combination with paper ballots in any election * * *. It may enlarge, consolidate or
alter the boundaries of precincts where an electronic voting system is used.
The provisions of Sections 23-15-461 through 23-15-485 shall be controlling
with respect to elections where an electronic voting system is used, and shall
be liberally construed so as to carry out the purpose of this chapter. The
provisions of the election law relating to the conduct of elections with paper
ballots, insofar as they are applicable and not inconsistent with the efficient
conduct of elections with electronic voting systems, shall apply. Absentee
ballots shall be voted as now provided by law.
SECTION 33. Section 23-15-465, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-465. No electronic voting system, consisting of a marking or voting device in combination with automatic tabulating equipment, shall be acquired or used in accordance with Sections 23-15-461 through 23-15-485 unless it shall:
(a) Provide for voting in secrecy when used with voting booths;
(b) Permit each voter to vote at any election for all persons and offices for whom and for which he is lawfully entitled to vote; to vote for as many persons for an office as he is entitled to vote for; to vote for or against any question upon which he is entitled to vote; and the automatic tabulating equipment shall reject choices recorded on his ballot card or paper ballot if the number of choices exceeds the number which he is entitled to vote for the office or on the measure;
(c) Permit each voter, at presidential elections, by one (1) mark or punch to vote for the candidates of that party for President, Vice President, and their presidential electors, or to vote individually for the electors of his choice when permitted by law;
(d) Permit each voter * * * to vote for
the * * *
candidates of one or more parties and for independent * * * candidates;
* * *
( * * *e) Permit each voter to vote for
persons whose names are not on the printed ballot or ballot labels;
( * * *f) Prevent the voter from voting for
the same person more than once for the same office;
( * * *g) Be suitably designed for the
purpose used, of durable construction, and may be used safely, efficiently and
accurately in the conduct of elections and counting ballots;
( * * *h) Be provided with means for sealing
the voting or marking device against any further voting after the close of the
polls and the last voter has voted;
( * * *i) When properly operated, record
correctly and count accurately every vote cast;
( * * *j) Be provided with a mechanical model
for instructing voters, and be so constructed that a voter may readily learn
the method of operating it;
( * * *k) Be safely transportable, and
include a light to enable voters to read the ballot labels and instructions.
SECTION 34. Section 23-15-507, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-507. No OMR equipment shall be acquired or used in accordance with this chapter unless it shall:
(a) Permit eligible voters to vote at any election for all persons for whom they are lawfully entitled to vote; to vote for as many persons for an office as they are lawfully entitled to vote; to vote for or against any ballot initiative, measure or other local issue upon which they are lawfully entitled to vote;
(b) The OMR equipment shall be capable of rejecting choices marked on the ballot if the number of choices exceeds the number that the voter is entitled to vote for the office or on the measure;
(c) Permit each voter, in presidential elections, by one (1) mark to vote for the candidates of that party for President, Vice President, and their presidential electors, or to vote individually for the electors of their choice when permitted by law;
(d) Permit each voter * * * to vote for
the * * *
candidates of one or more parties and for independent candidates;
* * *
( * * *e) Permit each voter to vote for
persons whose names are not on the printed ballot;
( * * *f) Be suitably designed for the
purpose used, of durable construction, and may be used safely, efficiently and
accurately in the conduct of elections and the counting of ballots;
( * * *g) Be provided with means for sealing
the ballots after the close of the polls;
( * * *h) When properly operated, record
correctly and count accurately all votes cast; and
( * * *i) Provide the voter with a set of
instructions that will be displayed in such a way that a voter may readily
learn the method of voting.
SECTION 35. Section 23-15-511, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-511. The ballots
shall, as far as practicable, be in the same order of arrangement as provided
for paper ballots that are to be counted manually, except that the information
may be printed in vertical or horizontal rows. Nothing in this chapter shall
be construed as prohibiting the information being presented to the voters from
being printed on both sides of a single ballot. In those years when a special
election shall occur on the same day as the general election, the names of
candidates in any special election and the general election shall be placed on
the same ballot by the election commissioners or officials in charge of the
election, but the general election candidates shall be clearly distinguished
from the special election candidates. At any time a special election is held
on the same day as a * * * preferential election, the names of the
candidates in the special election may be placed on the same ballot by the
officials in charge of the election, but shall be clearly distinguished as
special election candidates or * * * preferential election
candidates.
Ballots shall be printed in
plain clear type in black ink and upon clear white materials of such size and
arrangement as to be compatible with the OMR equipment. Absentee ballots shall
be prepared and printed in the same form and shall be on the same size and
texture as the regular official ballots, except that they shall be printed on
tinted paper; or the ink used to print the ballots shall be of a color
different from that of the ink used to print the regular official ballots.
Arrows may be printed on the ballot to indicate the place to mark the ballot,
which may be to the right or left of the names of candidates and propositions.
The titles of offices may be arranged in vertical columns on the ballot and
shall be printed above or at the side of the names of candidates so as to
indicate clearly the candidates for each office and the number to be elected.
In case there are more candidates for an office than can be printed in one (1)
column, the ballot shall be clearly marked that the list of candidates is
continued on the following column. The names of candidates for each office
shall be printed in vertical columns, grouped by the offices that they seek. * * * The party designation,
if any, of each candidate * * * shall be printed
following his or her name.
One (1) sample ballot, which shall be a facsimile of the official ballot and instructions to the voters, shall be provided for each precinct and shall be posted in each polling place on election day.
A separate ballot security envelope or suitable equivalent in which the voter can place his or her ballot after voting, shall be provided to conceal the choices the voter has made. Absentee voters will receive a similar ballot security envelope provided by the county in which the absentee voter will insert their voted ballot, which then can be inserted into a return envelope to be mailed back to the election official. Absentee ballots will not be required to be folded when a ballot security envelope is provided.
SECTION 36. Section 23-15-559, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-559. The provisions
of * * * Section 23-15-173 fixing the time for the holding of
general elections shall not apply to any municipality operating under a special
or private charter where the governing board or authority thereof, on or before
June 25, 1952, shall have adopted and spread upon its minutes a resolution or
ordinance declining to accept such provisions, in which event the * * * general elections shall be held at
the time fixed by the charter of such municipality.
The provisions of Section 23-15-859 shall be applicable to all municipalities of this state, whether operating under a code charter, special charter, or the commission form of government, except in cases of conflicts between the provisions of such section and the provisions of the special charter of a municipality, or the law governing the commission form of government, in which cases of conflict the provisions of the special charter or the statutes relative to the commission form of government shall apply.
SECTION 37. Section 23-15-561, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-561. (1) It shall be
unlawful during any * * * election for any candidate for any elective
office or any representative of such candidate or any other person to publicly
or privately put up or in any way offer any prize, cash award or other item of
value to be raffled, drawn for, played for or contested for in order to
encourage persons to vote or to refrain from voting in any election.
(2) Any person who shall violate the provisions of subsection (1) of this section shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine in an amount not to exceed Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00).
(3) Any candidate who shall violate the provisions of subsection (1) of this section shall, upon conviction thereof, in addition to the fine prescribed above, be punished by:
(a) Disqualification as a candidate in the race for the elective office; or
(b) Removal from the elective office, if the offender has been elected thereto.
SECTION 38. Section 23-15-573, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-573. (1) If any person declares that he or she is a registered voter in the jurisdiction in which he or she offers to vote and that he or she is eligible to vote in the election, but his or her name does not appear upon the pollbooks, or that he or she is not able to cast a regular election day ballot under a provision of state or federal law but is otherwise qualified to vote, or that he or she has been illegally denied registration, or that he or she is unable to present an acceptable form of photo identification:
(a) A poll manager shall notify the person that he or she may cast an affidavit ballot at the election.
(b) The person shall be permitted to cast an affidavit ballot at the polling place upon execution of a written affidavit before one (1) of the poll managers stating that the individual:
(i) Believes he or she is a registered voter in the jurisdiction in which he or she desires to vote and is eligible to vote in the election; or
(ii) Is not able to cast a regular election day ballot under a provision of state or federal law but is otherwise qualified to vote; or
(iii) Believes that he or she has been illegally denied registration; or
(iv) Is unable to present an acceptable form of photo identification.
(c) The poll manager shall allow the individual to mark a paper ballot properly endorsed by the initialing poll manager or alternate initialing poll manager in accordance with Section 23-15-541, which shall be delivered by him or her to the proper election official who shall enclose it in an affidavit ballot envelope, with the written and signed affidavit of the voter affixed to the envelope, seal the envelope and mark plainly upon it the name of the person offering to vote.
(2) The affidavit ballot envelope shall include:
(a) The complete name of the voter;
(b) A present and previous physical and mailing address of the voter;
(c) Telephone numbers where the voter may be contacted;
(d) A statement that the affiant believes he or she is registered to vote in the jurisdiction in which he or she offers to vote;
(e) The signature of the affiant; and
(f) The signature of the poll manager at the polling place at which the affiant offers to vote.
(3) (a) A separate receipt book shall be maintained for affidavit voters and the affidavit voters shall sign the receipt book upon completing the affidavit ballot.
(b) If the affidavit voter is casting an affidavit ballot because the voter is unable to present an acceptable form of photo identification and the voter's name appears in the pollbook, then the poll manager shall write "NO ID" across from the voter's name and in the appropriate column in the pollbook.
(c) In canvassing the
returns of the election, * * *the executive committee in primary elections, or the election
commissioners * * * shall examine the records and allow the ballot to
be counted, or not counted as it appears legal.
(d) An affidavit ballot of a voter who was unable to present an acceptable form of photo identification shall not be rejected for this reason if the voter does either of the following:
(i) Returns to the circuit clerk's office, or to the municipal clerk's office for municipal elections, within five (5) business days after the date of the election and presents an acceptable form of photo identification;
(ii) Returns to the circuit clerk's office within five (5) business days after the date of the election to obtain the Mississippi Voter Identification Card, or in municipal election, returns to the municipal clerk's office within five (5) business days after the date of the election to present his or her Mississippi Voter Identification Card or Temporary Mississippi Voter Identification Card; or
(iii) Returns to the circuit clerk's office, or to the municipal clerk's office for municipal elections, within five (5) business days after the date of the election to execute a separate Affidavit of Religious Objection.
(4) When a person is offered the opportunity to vote by affidavit ballot, he or she shall be provided with written information that informs the person how to ascertain whether his or her affidavit ballot was counted and, if the vote was not counted, the reasons the vote was not counted.
(5) The officials in charge of the election shall process all affidavit ballots by using the Statewide Elections Management System. The officials in charge of the election shall account for all affidavit ballots cast in each election, categorizing the affidavit ballots cast by reason and recording the total number of affidavit ballots counted and not counted in each such category in the Statewide Elections Management System.
(6) The Secretary of State
shall, by rule duly adopted, establish a uniform affidavit ballot envelope that
shall be used in all elections in this state. The Secretary of State shall
print and distribute a sufficient number of affidavit ballot envelopes to the
registrar of each county for use in elections. The registrar shall distribute
the affidavit ballot envelopes * * * to municipal and county election commissioners
for use in all * * *
elections.
(7) County registrars and municipal registrars shall maintain a secure free access system that complies with the Help America Vote Act of 2002, by which persons who vote by affidavit ballot may determine if their ballots were counted, and if not, the reasons the ballot was not counted.
(8) Any person who votes in any election as a result of a federal or state court order or other order extending the time established by law for closing the polls on an election day, may only vote by affidavit ballot. Any affidavit ballot cast under this subsection shall be separated and kept apart from other affidavit ballots cast by voters not affected by the order.
SECTION 39. Section 23-15-593, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-593. When the ballot
box is opened and examined by the * * * county election commissioners * * *, and it is
found that there have been failures in material particulars to comply with the
requirements of Section 23-15-591 and Section 23-15-895 to such an extent that
it is impossible to arrive at the will of the voters at * * * the precinct, the entire box may be
thrown out unless it be made to appear with reasonable certainty that the
irregularities were not deliberately permitted or engaged in by the poll
managers at that box, or by one (1) of them responsible for the wrong or
wrongs, for the purpose of electing or defeating a certain candidate or
candidates by manipulating the election or the returns thereof at that box in * * * a manner as to have it thrown out;
in which latter case * * * the county election commission * * * shall conduct * * * a hearing and make * * * a determination in respect to the
box as may appear lawfully just, subject to a judicial review of the matter as
elsewhere provided by this chapter. * * * The election
commission * * *
or the court upon review * * *, may order another election to be held at that box appointing
new poll managers to hold the same.
SECTION 40. Section 23-15-595, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-595. The box
containing the ballots and other records required by this chapter shall, immediately
after the ballots have been counted, be delivered by one (1) of the poll
managers to the clerk of the circuit court of the county and the clerk shall,
in the presence of the poll manager making delivery of the box, place upon the
lock of such box a tamper-evident seal. The seals shall be numbered
consecutively to the number of ballot boxes used in the election in the county,
and the clerk shall keep in a place separate from such boxes a record of the
number of the seal of each separate box in the county. The board of
supervisors of the county shall pay the cost of providing the seals. Upon
demand of * * * a
county election commissioner, the boxes and their contents shall be delivered
to the county election commission. After the commission has finished the work
of tabulating returns and counting ballots as required by law, the commission
shall return all papers and ballots to the box of the precinct where the
election was held, and it shall make redelivery of the boxes and their contents
to the circuit clerk who shall reseal the boxes. Upon every occasion the boxes
shall be reopened * * *, the resealing of the boxes shall be done as
provided in this chapter.
SECTION 41. Section 23-15-601, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-601. (1) When the
result of the election shall have been ascertained by the poll managers they,
or one (1) of their number, or some fit person designated by them, shall, on
the night of the election, deliver to the election commissioners, at the
courthouse, a statement of the whole number of votes given for each person and
for what office * * *.
On the first or second day after any preferential election and after any
general election, the election commissioners shall canvass the returns,
ascertain and declare the result, and * * * announce the names of the candidates who have
received the majority of the votes cast for representative in the
Legislature of districts composed of one (1) county or less, or other county
office, board of supervisors, justice court judge and constable. * * * The election commissioners shall also announce the
names of those candidates for the above-mentioned offices that are to be
submitted to the general election.
(2) The vote for statewide and state-district offices shall be tabulated by precincts and certified to and returned to the state election commissioners. The returns shall be mailed by registered letter or any safe mode of transportation within thirty-six (36) hours after the returns are canvassed and the results ascertained. The state election commissioners shall meet a week from the day following the preferential election held for statewide and state-district offices. On that day, they shall canvass the returns, declare the results and announce the names of the candidates for the different offices who have received a majority of the votes cast and the names of those candidates whose names are to be submitted to the general election. The state election commissioners shall also meet a week from the day on which the general election is held to receive and canvass the returns for statewide and state-district offices voted on in the general election. An exact and full duplicate of all tabulations by precincts, as certified under this section, shall be filed with the circuit clerk of the county who shall safely preserve the same in his or her office.
( * * *3) The election commissioners shall
transmit to the Secretary of State, on such forms and by such methods as may be
required by rules and regulations promulgated by the Secretary of State, a
statement of the total number of votes cast in the county for each candidate
for each office and the total number of votes cast for such candidates in each
precinct in the district in which the candidate ran.
SECTION 42. Section 23-15-605, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-605. The Secretary of
State, immediately after receiving the returns of * * * a general election * * * not longer than thirty (30) days after the
election, shall sum up the whole number of votes given for each candidate other
than candidates for state offices, legislative offices composed of one (1)
county or less, county offices and county-district offices, according to
the statements of the votes certified to him or her and ascertain the person or
persons having the largest number of votes for each office, and declare such
person or persons to be duly elected; and thereupon all persons chosen to any
office at the election shall be commissioned by the Governor * * *. But if it appears that two (2) or
more candidates for any district office where the district is composed of two
(2) or more counties, standing highest on the list, and not elected, have an
equal number of votes, the election shall be decided between the candidates
having an equal number of votes by each candidate individually drawing one (1)
of the two (2) sealed containers from an opaque bag, under the direction of the
Governor and Secretary of State. The containers shall consist of a straw of
conspicuous length, and the candidate drawing the container with the longer of the
two (2) straws shall be declared the winner.
SECTION 43. Section 23-15-673, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-673. (1) For the purposes of this subarticle, the term "absent voter" shall mean and include the following persons if they are absent from their county of residence and are otherwise qualified to vote in Mississippi:
(a) Any enlisted or commissioned members, male or female, of the United States Army, or any of its respective components or various divisions thereof; any enlisted or commissioned members, male or female, of the United States Navy, or any of its respective components or various divisions thereof; any enlisted or commissioned members, male or female, of the United States Air Force, or any of its respective components or various divisions thereof; any enlisted or commissioned members, male or female, of the United States Marines, or any of its respective components or various divisions thereof; or any persons in any division of the armed services of the United States, who are citizens of Mississippi;
(b) Any member of the Merchant Marine and the American Red Cross who is a citizen of Mississippi;
(c) Any disabled war veteran who is a patient in any hospital and who is a citizen of Mississippi;
(d) Any civilian attached to and serving outside of the United States with any branch of the Armed Forces or with the Merchant Marine or American Red Cross, and who is a citizen of Mississippi;
(e) Any trained or certified emergency response provider who is deployed during the time period authorized by law for absentee voting, on election day, or during any state of emergency declared by the President of the United States or any Governor of any state within the United States;
(f) Any citizen of Mississippi temporarily residing outside the territorial limits of the United States and the District of Columbia;
(g) Any citizen of Mississippi enrolled as a student at the United States Naval Academy, the United States Coast Guard Academy, the United States Merchant Marine Academy, the United States Air Force Academy or the United States Military Academy.
(2) The spouse and dependents of any absent voter as set out in paragraphs (a) through (g) of subsection (1) of this section shall also be included in the meaning of absent voter and may register to vote and vote an absentee ballot as provided in this subarticle if also absent from the county of their residence on the date of the election and otherwise qualified to vote in Mississippi.
(3) For the purpose of this
subarticle, the term "election" shall mean and include the following
sets of elections: special and runoff special elections, preferential and
general elections * * * or general elections without
preferential elections, whichever system is applicable.
SECTION 44. Section 23-15-713, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-713. For the purpose
of this subarticle, any duly qualified elector may vote as provided in this
subarticle if * * * the elector falls within the following categories:
(a) Any qualified
elector who is a bona fide student, teacher or administrator at any college,
university, junior college, high, junior high, or elementary grade school whose
studies or employment at such institution necessitates * * * the elector's absence from the
county of his or her voting residence on the date of any * * * election, or the
spouse and dependents of * * *said the student, teacher or administrator if * * * the spouse or dependent(s) maintain
a common domicile, outside of the county of his or her voting residence,
with * * * the
student, teacher or administrator.
(b) Any qualified
elector who is required to be away from his place of residence on any election
day due to his employment as an employee of a member of the Mississippi
congressional delegation and the spouse and dependents of * * * the elector if he or she
shall be residing with such * * * elector away from the
county of the spouse's voting residence.
(c) Any qualified elector who is away from his county of residence on election day for any reason.
(d) Any person who has a temporary or permanent physical disability and who, because of such disability, is unable to vote in person without substantial hardship to himself or others, or whose attendance at the voting place could reasonably cause danger to himself or others.
(e) The parent, spouse or dependent of a person with a temporary or permanent physical disability who is hospitalized outside of his county of residence or more than fifty (50) miles distant from his residence, if the parent, spouse or dependent will be with such person on election day.
(f) Any person who is sixty-five (65) years of age or older.
(g) Any member of the Mississippi congressional delegation absent from Mississippi on election day, and the spouse and dependents of such member of the congressional delegation.
(h) Any qualified elector who will be unable to vote in person because he is required to be at work on election day during the times at which the polls will be open.
SECTION 45. Section 23-15-755, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-755. All of the
provisions of Sections 23-15-621 through 23-15-735 shall be applicable, insofar
as possible, to municipal, * * * preferential, general and special
elections, and wherever herein any duty is imposed or any power or authority is
conferred upon the county registrar * * * or county election commissioners * * * with reference
to a state and county election, * * * the duty shall likewise be imposed
and * * * the
power and authority shall likewise be conferred upon the municipal registrar * * * or municipal election commission * * * with reference
to any municipal election. * * *
SECTION 46. Section 23-15-771, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-771. At the state
convention, a slate of electors composed of the number of electors allotted to
this state, which said electors announce a clearly expressed design and purpose
to support the candidates for President and Vice President of the national
political party with which the * * * party of this state has had an affiliation
and identity of purpose heretofore, shall be designated and selected for a
place upon the * * * election ballot to be held as herein provided.
SECTION 47. Section 23-15-801, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-801. (a)
"Election" means a preferential, general, special, * * * or runoff election.
(b) "Candidate"
means an individual who seeks * * * election * * * to any elective office other than a federal
elective office. For purposes of this article, an individual shall be deemed
to seek * * * election:
(i) If the individual
has received contributions aggregating in excess of Two Hundred Dollars
($200.00) or has made expenditures aggregating in excess of Two Hundred Dollars
($200.00) or for a candidate for the Legislature or any statewide or state
district office, by the qualifying deadlines specified in * * * Section 8 of this act
and Section 23-15-977, whichever occurs first; or
(ii) If the individual has given his or her consent to another person to receive contributions or make expenditures on behalf of the individual and if the other person has received contributions aggregating in excess of Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) during a calendar year, or has made expenditures aggregating in excess of Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) during a calendar year.
(c) "Political
committee" means any committee, party, club, association, political action
committee, campaign committee or other groups of persons or affiliated
organizations that receives contributions aggregating in excess of Two Hundred
Dollars ($200.00) during a calendar year or that makes expenditures aggregating
in excess of Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) during a calendar year for the
purpose of influencing or attempting to influence the action of voters for or
against the * * * election, of one or more candidates, or balloted
measures. Political committee shall, in addition, include each political party
registered with the Secretary of State.
(d) "Affiliated organization" means any organization that is not a political committee, but that directly or indirectly establishes, administers or financially supports a political committee.
(e) (i) "Contribution" shall include any gift, subscription, loan, advance or deposit of money or anything of value made by any person or political committee for the purpose of influencing any election for elective office or balloted measure;
(ii) "Contribution" shall not include the value of services provided without compensation by any individual who volunteers on behalf of a candidate or political committee; or the cost of any food or beverage for use in any candidate's campaign or for use by or on behalf of any political committee of a political party;
(iii) "Contribution to a political party" includes any gift, subscription, loan, advance or deposit of money or anything of value made by any person, political committee, or other organization to a political party and to any committee, subcommittee, campaign committee, political committee and other groups of persons and affiliated organizations of the political party;
(iv) "Contribution to a political party" shall not include the value of services provided without compensation by any individual who volunteers on behalf of a political party or a candidate of a political party.
(f) (i) "Expenditure" shall include any purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, gift of money or anything of value, made by any person or political committee for the purpose of influencing any balloted measure or election for elective office; and a written contract, promise, or agreement to make an expenditure;
(ii) "Expenditure" shall not include any news story, commentary or editorial distributed through the facilities of any broadcasting station, newspaper, magazine, or other periodical publication, unless the facilities are owned or controlled by any political party, political committee, or candidate; or nonpartisan activity designed to encourage individuals to vote or to register to vote;
(iii) "Expenditure by a political party" includes 1. any purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, gift of money or anything of value, made by any political party and by any contractor, subcontractor, agent, and consultant to the political party; and 2. a written contract, promise, or agreement to make such an expenditure.
(g) The term "identification" shall mean:
(i) In the case of any individual, the name, the mailing address, and the occupation of such individual, as well as the name of his or her employer; and
(ii) In the case of any other person, the full name and address of the person.
(h) The term "political party" shall mean an association, committee or organization which nominates a candidate for election to any elective office whose name appears on the election ballot as the candidate of the association, committee or organization.
(i) The term "person" shall mean any individual, family, firm, corporation, partnership, association or other legal entity.
(j) The term "independent expenditure" shall mean an expenditure by a person expressly advocating the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate that is made without cooperation or consultation with any candidate or any authorized committee or agent of the candidate, and that is not made in concert with or at the request or suggestion of any candidate or any authorized committee or agent of the candidate.
(k) The term "clearly identified" shall mean that:
(i) The name of the candidate involved appears; or
(ii) A photograph or drawing of the candidate appears; or
(iii) The identity of the candidate is apparent by unambiguous reference.
SECTION 48. Section 23-15-807, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-807. (a) Each candidate or political committee shall file reports of contributions and disbursements in accordance with the provisions of this section. All candidates or political committees required to report such contributions and disbursements may terminate the obligation to report only upon submitting a final report that contributions will no longer be received or disbursements made and that the candidate or committee has no outstanding debts or obligations. The candidate, treasurer or chief executive officer shall sign the report.
(b) Candidates seeking
election * * * and political committees making
expenditures to influence or attempt to influence voters for or against the * * * election of one or more
candidates or balloted measures at such election, shall file the following
reports:
(i) In any calendar year during which there is a regularly scheduled election, a pre-election report shall be filed no later than the seventh day before any election in which the candidate or political committee has accepted contributions or made expenditures and shall be completed as of the tenth day before the election;
(ii) In 1987 and every fourth year thereafter, periodic reports shall be filed no later than the tenth day after April 30, May 31, June 30, September 30 and December 31, and shall be completed as of the last day of each period;
(iii) In any calendar years except 1987 and except every fourth year thereafter, a report covering the calendar year shall be filed no later than January 31 of the following calendar year; and
(iv) Except as otherwise provided in the requirements of paragraph (i) of this subsection (b), unopposed candidates are not required to file pre-election reports but must file all other reports required by paragraphs (ii) and (iii) of this subsection (b).
(c) All candidates for judicial office as defined in Section 23-15-975, or their political committees, shall file periodic reports in the year in which they are to be elected no later than the tenth day after April 30, May 31, June 30, September 30 and December 31.
(d) Each report under this article shall disclose:
(i) For the reporting period and the calendar year, the total amount of all contributions and the total amount of all expenditures of the candidate or reporting committee, including those required to be identified pursuant to paragraph (ii) of this subsection (d) as well as the total of all other contributions and expenditures during the calendar year. The reports shall be cumulative during the calendar year to which they relate;
(ii) The identification of:
1. Each person or political committee who makes a contribution to the reporting candidate or political committee during the reporting period, whose contribution or contributions within the calendar year have an aggregate amount or value in excess of Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) when made to a political committee or to a candidate for an office other than a statewide office or an office elected by Supreme Court district, or in excess of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) when made to a candidate for statewide office or office elected by Supreme Court district, together with the date and amount of any such contribution;
2. Each person or organization, candidate or political committee who receives an expenditure, payment or other transfer from the reporting candidate, political committee or its agent, employee, designee, contractor, consultant or other person or persons acting in its behalf during the reporting period when the expenditure, payment or other transfer to the person, organization, candidate or political committee within the calendar year have an aggregate value or amount in excess of Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) when received from a political committee or candidate for an office other than a statewide office or an office elected by Supreme Court district, or in excess of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) when received from a candidate for statewide office, together with the date and amount of the expenditure;
(iii) The total amount of cash on hand of each reporting candidate and reporting political committee;
(iv) In addition to the contents of reports specified in paragraphs (i), (ii) and (iii) of this subsection (d), each political party shall disclose:
1. Each person or political committee who makes a contribution to a political party during the reporting period and whose contribution or contributions to a political party within the calendar year have an aggregate amount or value in excess of Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00), together with the date and amount of the contribution;
2. Each person or organization who receives an expenditure or expenditures by a political party during the reporting period when the expenditure or expenditures to the person or organization within the calendar year have an aggregate value or amount in excess of Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00), together with the date and amount of the expenditure;
(v) Disclosure required under this section of an expenditure to a credit card issuer, financial institution or business allowing payments and money transfers to be made over the Internet must include, by way of detail or separate entry, the amount of funds passing to each person, business entity or organization receiving funds from the expenditure.
(e) The appropriate office specified in Section 23-15-805 must be in actual receipt of the reports specified in this article by 5:00 p.m. on the dates specified in subsection (b) of this section. If the date specified in subsection (b) of this section shall fall on a weekend or legal holiday then the report shall be due in the appropriate office at 5:00 p.m. on the first working day before the date specified in subsection (b) of this section. The reporting candidate or reporting political committee shall ensure that the reports are delivered to the appropriate office by the filing deadline. The Secretary of State may approve specific means of electronic transmission of completed campaign finance disclosure reports, which may include, but not be limited to, transmission by electronic facsimile (FAX) devices.
(f) (i) If any contribution of more than Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) is received by a candidate or candidate's political committee after the tenth day, but more than forty-eight (48) hours before 12:01 a.m. of the day of the election, the candidate or political committee shall notify the appropriate office designated in Section 23-15-805, within forty-eight (48) hours of receipt of the contribution. The notification shall include:
1. The name of the receiving candidate;
2. The name of the receiving candidate's political committee, if any;
3. The office sought by the candidate;
4. The identification of the contributor;
5. The date of receipt;
6. The amount of the contribution;
7. If the contribution is in-kind, a description of the in-kind contribution; and
8. The signature of the candidate or the treasurer or chair of the candidate's political organization.
(ii) The notification shall be in writing, and may be transmitted by overnight mail, courier service, or other reliable means, including electronic facsimile (FAX), but the candidate or candidate's committee shall ensure that the notification shall in fact be received in the appropriate office designated in Section 23-15-805 within forty-eight (48) hours of the contribution.
SECTION 49. Section 23-15-811, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-811. (a) Any candidate or any other person who willfully violates the provisions and prohibitions of this article shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be punished by a fine in a sum not to exceed Three Thousand Dollars ($3,000.00) or imprisoned for not longer than six (6) months or by both fine and imprisonment.
(b) In addition to the penalties provided in subsection (a) of this section and Chapter 13, Title 97, Mississippi Code of 1972, any candidate or political committee which is required to file a statement or report and fails to file the statement or report on the date it is due may be compelled to file the statement or report by an action in the nature of a mandamus brought by the Mississippi Ethics Commission.
(c) No candidate shall be
certified * * * as elected to office until he or she files all
reports required by this article that are due as of the date of certification.
(d) No candidate who is elected to office shall receive any salary or other remuneration for the office until he or she files all reports required by this article that are due as of the date the salary or remuneration is payable.
(e) In the event that a candidate fails to timely file any report required pursuant to this article but subsequently files a report or reports containing all of the information required to be reported, the candidate shall not be subject to the sanctions of subsections (c) and (d) of this section.
SECTION 50. Section 23-15-833, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-833. Except as otherwise provided by law, the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of each year shall be designated the regular special election day, and on that day an election shall be held to fill any vacancy in county, county district, and district attorney elective offices, and any vacancy in the office of circuit judge or chancellor.
All special elections, or
elections to fill vacancies, shall in all respects be held, conducted and
returned in the same manner as general elections, except that where no
candidate receives a majority of the votes cast in the election, a runoff
election shall be held three (3) weeks after the election. The two (2)
candidates who receive the highest number of popular votes for the
office shall have their names submitted as the candidates to the runoff,
and the candidate who leads in the runoff election shall be elected to the
office. When there is a tie in the first election of those receiving the next
highest number of votes, these two (2) and the one receiving the
highest number of votes, none having received a majority, shall
go into the runoff election, and * * * the candidate who leads in the
runoff election shall be entitled to the office.
In those years when the
regular special election day shall occur on the same day as the general
election, the names of candidates in any special election and the general
election shall be placed on the same ballot, but shall be clearly distinguished
as general election candidates or special election candidates. * * *
SECTION 51. Section 23-15-859, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-859. Whenever under
any statute a special election is required or authorized to be held in any
municipality, and the statute authorizing or requiring the election does not
specify the time within which the election shall be called, or the notice which
shall be given, the governing authorities of the municipality shall, by
resolution, fix a date upon which the election shall be held. The date shall
not be less than twenty-one (21) nor more than thirty (30) days after the date
upon which such resolution is adopted, and not less than three (3) weeks'
notice of the election shall be given by the clerk by a notice published in a
newspaper published in the municipality once each week for three (3) weeks next
preceding the date of the election, and by posting a copy of the notice at
three (3) public places in the municipality. * * * This
section shall not apply to elections on the question of the issuance of the
bonds of a municipality or to general * * * elections for the election of
municipal officers.
The provisions of this section shall be applicable to all municipalities of this state, whether operating under a code charter, special charter or the commission form of government, except in cases of conflicts between the provisions of the section and the provisions of the special charter of a municipality, or the law governing the commission form of government, in which cases of conflict the provisions of the special charter or the statutes relative to the commission form of government shall apply.
SECTION 52. Section 23-15-873, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-873. (1) No person,
whether an officer or not, shall, in order to promote his or her own candidacy,
or that of any other person, to be a candidate for public office in this state,
directly or indirectly, himself, or herself or through another person, promise
to appoint, or promise to secure or assist in securing the appointment * * * or election of another person to
any public position or employment, or to secure or assist in securing any
public contract or the employment of any person under any public contractor, or
to secure or assist in securing the expenditure of any public funds * * * on the personal behalf of any
particular person or group of persons, except that the candidate may publicly
announce what is his or her choice or purpose in relation to an election in
which he or she may be called on to take part if elected.
(2) It shall be unlawful for any person to directly or indirectly solicit or receive any promise by this section prohibited, but this does not apply to any person when it comes to their office force.
(3) Any violation of this section shall constitute a violation of Section 97-13-37 and shall be referred to the district attorney for prosecution.
SECTION 53. Section 23-15-881, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-881. It shall be
unlawful for the Mississippi Transportation Commission or any member of the
Mississippi Transportation Commission, or the board of supervisors of any
county or any member of the board of supervisors of such county, to employ,
during the months of * * * August, September, October and November of any
year in which a general * * *primary election is held for the * * * election of members of the
Mississippi Transportation Commission and members of the boards of supervisors,
a greater number of persons to work and maintain the state highways, in any
highway district, or the public roads, in any supervisors district of the
county, as the case may be, than the average number of persons employed for
similar purposes in such highway district or supervisors district, as the case
may be, during the months of * * * August, September,
October and November of the three (3) years immediately preceding the year
in which such general * * *
election is held. It shall be unlawful for the Mississippi Transportation
Commission, or the board of supervisors of any county, to expend out of the
state highway funds, or the road funds of the county or any supervisors
district thereof, as the case may be, in the payment of wages or other
compensation for labor performed in working and maintaining the highways of any
highway district, or the public roads of any supervisors district of the
county, as the case may be, during the months of * * * August, September,
October and November of such election year, a total amount in excess of the
average total amount expended for such labor, in such highway district or
supervisors district, as the case may be, during the corresponding four-month
period of the three (3) years immediately preceding.
It shall be the duty of the
Mississippi Transportation Commission and the board of supervisors of each
county, respectively, to keep sufficient records of the numbers of employees
and expenditures made for labor on the state highways of each highway district,
and the public roads of each supervisors district, for the months of * * * August, September,
October and November of each year, to show the number of persons employed
for such work in each highway district and each supervisors district, as the
case may be, during said four-month period, and the total amount expended in
the payment of salaries and other compensation to such employees, so that it
may be ascertained, from an examination of such records, whether or not the
provisions of this chapter have been violated.
SECTION 54. Section 23-15-885, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-885. The restrictions
imposed in Sections 23-15-881 and 23-15-883 shall likewise apply to the mayor
and board of aldermen, or other governing authority, of each municipality, in
the employment of labor for working and maintaining the streets of the
municipality during the four-month period next preceding the date of holding
the general * * *
election in such municipality for the election of municipal officers.
SECTION 55. Section 23-15-891, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-891. No common
carrier, Internet service provider or telephone company shall give to
any candidate, or to any member of any political committee, or to any person to
be used to aid or promote the success or defeat of any candidate for election
for any public office, free transportation or Internet service or telephone
service, as the case may be, or any reduction thereof that is not made alike to
all other persons. All persons required by the provisions of this chapter to
make and file statements shall make oath that they have not received or made
use of, directly or indirectly, in connection with any candidacy for * * * election to any public
office, free transportation or Internet or telephone service.
SECTION 56. Section 23-15-899, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-899. Every placard,
bill, poster, pamphlet or other printed matter having reference to any
election, or to any candidate, that has not been submitted to, and approved and
subscribed by a candidate or his campaign manager or assistant manager pursuant
to the provisions of Section 23-15-897, shall bear upon the face thereof the
name and the address of the author and of the printer and publisher thereof,
and failure to so provide shall be a misdemeanor, and it shall be a misdemeanor
for any person to mutilate, or remove, previously to the date of the * * * election, any placard, poster or
picture which has been lawfully placed or posted.
SECTION 57. Section 23-15-911, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-911. (1) (a) When
the returns for a box and the contents of the ballot box and the conduct of the
election have been canvassed and reviewed by the county election commission * * *, all the contents of the
box required to be placed and sealed in the ballot box by the poll managers
shall be replaced therein by the election commission * * *,
and the box shall be * * *
resealed and delivered to the circuit clerk, who shall safely keep and secure
the same against any tampering. At any time within twelve (12) days after the
canvass and examination of the box and its contents by the election commission * * *,
any candidate or his or her representative authorized in writing by him or her
shall have the right of full examination of the box and its contents upon three
(3) days' notice of his or her application therefor served upon the opposing
candidates. The service of notice shall be provided to each opposing candidate
by delivering a copy personally to each candidate, or by performing two (2) of
the following:
(i) By leaving a copy at each candidate's usual place of residence with a family member, who shall be no less than sixteen (16) years of age and, who resides in the candidate's residence;
(ii) By email or other electronic means, with receipt deemed upon transmission; or
(iii) By mailing a copy of the notice by registered or certified mail that is addressed to each opposing candidate at that candidate's residence with receipt deemed mailing.
(b) If service of notice cannot be made to any opposing candidate, then notice may be posted on the door of each candidate's usual place of abode. If any candidate's usual place of residence is a multi-family dwelling, a copy of the notice must be mailed to the candidate or candidates by United States first-class mail, postage prepaid, return receipt requested. Proof of service of notice upon any opposing candidate shall be made to the circuit clerk within three (3) days before a full examination of the ballot box may be conducted.
(c) The examination shall be conducted in the presence of the circuit clerk or his or her deputy who shall be charged with the duty to see that none of the contents of the box are removed from the presence of the clerk or in any way tampered with. Upon the completion of the examination the box shall be resealed with all its original contents inside. And if any contest or complaint before the court shall arise over the box, it shall be kept intact and sealed until the court hearing and another ballot box, if necessary, shall be furnished for the precinct involved.
(2) The provisions of this section allowing the examination of ballot boxes shall apply in the case of an election contest regarding the seat of a member of the state Legislature. In such a case, the results of the examination shall be reported by the applicable circuit clerk to the Clerk of the House of Representatives or the Secretary of the Senate, as the case may be.
SECTION 58. Section 23-15-973, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-973. It shall be the
duty of the judges of the circuit court to give a reasonable time and
opportunity to the candidates for the office of judge of the Supreme Court,
judges of the Court of Appeals, circuit judge and chancellor to address the
people during court terms. In order to give further and every possible
emphasis to the fact that the * * * judicial offices are not political but are
to be held without favor and with absolute impartiality as to all persons, and
because of the jurisdiction conferred upon the courts by this chapter, the
judges thereof should be as far removed as possible from any political
affiliations or obligations. It shall be unlawful for any candidate for any of
the offices mentioned in this section to align himself with any candidate or
candidates for any other office or with any political faction or any political
party at any time during any * * * election campaign. Likewise,
it shall be unlawful for any candidate for any other office * * * that is to be elected at the same election in which
any candidate for any of the judicial offices in this section mentioned * * * is to be
elected to align himself with any one or more of the candidates for said judicial
offices or to take any part whatever in any * * * election for any one or more
of said judicial offices, except to cast his individual vote. Any candidate
for any office, whether * * *nominated elected with or without opposition, at any * * * election in which a
candidate for any one (1) of the judicial offices * * * listed in this section
is to be * * *
elected who shall deliberately, knowingly and willfully violate the
provisions of this section shall * * *
void his election.
SECTION 59. Section 23-15-1065, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-1065. A person shall
be barred from participating in any * * * election
if that person claims or represents himself or herself in any manner to be a
member of any state, district or county executive committee of any political
party in this state, or claims to be the national committeeman or national
committeewoman or any other officer or representative of the political party
without having been lawfully elected or chosen as such in the manner provided
by the laws of this state * * *, or by the political party in the manner provided by the laws of this
state, or claims to be the nominee of any political party authorized by the
laws of this state to hold primary elections and choose party nominees, when in
fact such person has not been declared the nominee of such political party for
such office by such political party operating under the laws of this state.
Any person or persons who violate the provisions of this section, in addition
to other measures or penalties provided by law, may be enjoined therefrom upon
application to the courts by any person or persons, or any political party,
official or representative of the political party aggrieved.
SECTION 60. Section 23-15-1085, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-1085. The chairman of
a party's state executive committee shall notify the Secretary of State if the
party intends to hold a presidential * * * preferential primary. The
Secretary of State shall be notified prior to December 1 of the year preceding
the year in which a presidential preference primary may be held pursuant to
Section 23-15-1081. * * *
SECTION 61. Section 23-15-1087, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
23-15-1087. Except as
otherwise provided in this chapter, the laws regulating * * * elections shall, in
so far as practical, apply to and govern presidential preference primary
elections.
SECTION 62. Section 23-15-171, Mississippi Code of 1972, which provides for the dates of municipal primary elections, is hereby repealed.
SECTION 63. Section 23-15-191, Mississippi Code of 1972, which provides for the date of state, district and county primary elections, is hereby repealed.
SECTION 64. Sections 23-15-263, 23-15-265, 23-15-267, 23-15-291, 23-15-293, 23-15-295, 23-15-297, 23-15-299, 23-15-301, 23-15-303, 23-15-305, 23-15-307, 23-15-309, 23-15-311, 23-15-317, 23-15-319, 23-15-331, 23-15-333 and 23-15-335, Mississippi Code of 1972, which provide for the duties of the state executive committee and county executive committees in primary elections, provide for the qualification of candidates for party primary elections, and provide for the conduct of party primary elections, are hereby repealed.
SECTION 65. Sections 23-15-359, 23-15-361 and 23-15-363, Mississippi Code of 1972, which provide for the contents of general election ballots, are hereby repealed.
SECTION 66. Sections 23-15-597 and 23-15-599, Mississippi Code of 1972, which provide for the canvass of returns and announcement of vote by the county executive committees in primary elections, and require the state executive committee to transmit to the Secretary of State a tabulated statement of the party vote for certain offices, are hereby repealed.
SECTION 67. Sections 23-15-921, 23-15-923, 23-15-925, 23-15-927, 23-15-929, 23-15-931, 23-15-933, 23-15-935, 23-15-937, 23-15-939 and 23-15-941, Mississippi Code of 1972, which provide procedures for contests of primary elections, are hereby repealed.
SECTION 68. Section 23-15-1031, Mississippi Code of 1972, which provides for the date of primary elections for Congressmen and United States Senators, is hereby repealed.
SECTION 69. Section 23-15-1063, Mississippi Code of 1972, which prohibits unregistered political parties from conducting primary elections, is hereby repealed.
SECTION 70. Section 23-15-1083, Mississippi Code of 1972, which requires that certain congressional primaries be held on the same day as the presidential preference primary, is hereby repealed.
SECTION 71. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2019.