Senate Bill 2144

(As Sent to Governor)

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 23-15-171, 23-15-191, 23-15-193, 23-15-213, 23-15-833, 23-15-857, 23-15-981, 23-15-1031, 23-15-1083, 37-5-9, 37-7-215, 37-7-217, 37-7-227 AND 37-7-711, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE TIME FOR HOLDING RUNOFF ELECTIONS TO FOUR WEEKS AFTER THE FIRST ELECTION INSTEAD OF THREE WEEKS; TO CREATE A NEW SECTION IN TITLE 23, CHAPTER 15, ARTICLE 27, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROHIBIT RANKED-CHOICE VOTING IN STATEWIDE, COUNTY, LOCAL, MUNICIPAL OR SCHOOL DISTRICT ELECTIONS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 23-15-191, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

23-15-191. The first primary shall be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of August preceding any regular or general election; and the second primary shall be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks thereafter. The candidate that receives a majority of the votes cast in the election shall be the party nominee. If no candidate receives a majority vote at the election, then the two (2) candidates who receive the highest number of votes shall have their names placed on the ballot for the second primary election to be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks later. The candidate who receives the most votes in the second primary election shall be the party nominee. However, if no candidate receives a majority vote at the first primary, and there is a tie in the election of those receiving the next highest vote, then those candidates receiving the next highest vote and the candidate receiving the highest vote shall have their names placed on the ballot for the second primary election to be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks later, and whoever receives the most votes cast in the second primary election shall be the party nominee.

SECTION 2. Section 23-15-193, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

23-15-193. (1) At the election in 2023, and every four (4) years thereafter, there shall be elected a Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Auditor of Public Accounts, State Treasurer, Attorney General, three (3) public service commissioners, three (3) Mississippi Transportation Commissioners, Commissioner of Insurance, Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce, Senators and members of the House of Representatives in the Legislature, district attorneys for the several districts, clerks of the circuit and chancery courts of the several counties, as well as sheriffs, coroners, assessors, surveyors and members of the boards of supervisors, justice court judges and constables, and all other officers to be elected by the people at the general state election. All such officers shall hold their offices for a term of four (4) years, and until their successors are elected and qualified. The state officers shall be elected in the manner prescribed in Section 140 of the Constitution.

(2) The state officers that receive a majority of votes cast for the office at the general election shall be elected. If no candidate receives a majority number of votes cast at the election, then the two (2) candidates who receive the highest number of votes cast shall have their names placed on the ballot for the runoff election to be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks later. The candidate who receives a majority of the votes cast in the runoff election shall be elected. However, if no candidate receives a majority vote cast at the election, and there is a tie in the election of those receiving the next highest vote, then those candidates receiving the next highest vote and the candidate receiving the highest number of votes cast shall have their names placed on the ballot for the runoff election to be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks later, and whoever receives the majority of votes cast in the runoff election shall be elected. If it appears that two (2) or more candidates for state office have an equal number of votes after the runoff election, the interested candidates shall appear before the Chief Justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court within two (2) days after the canvass and the tie shall be determined by a toss of a coin or by lot fairly and publicly drawn, and a certificate of election shall be given accordingly.

SECTION 3. Section 23-15-213, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

23-15-213. (1) There shall be elected five (5) election commissioners for each county whose terms of office shall commence on the first Monday of January following their election and who shall serve for a term of four (4) years. Each of the commissioners shall be required to attend a training seminar provided by the Secretary of State and satisfactorily complete a skills assessment, and before acting, shall take and subscribe the oath of office prescribed by the Constitution. The oath shall be filed in the office of the clerk of the chancery court. Upon filing the oath of office, the election commissioner may be provided access to the Statewide Elections Management System for the purpose of performing his or her duties. Such skills assessment shall only be required once every four (4) years. While engaged in their duties, the commissioners shall be conservators of the peace in the county, with all the duties and powers of such.

(2) (a) At the general election in 2024 and every four (4) years thereafter, the qualified electors of the board of supervisors' Districts One, Three and Five shall elect in their district one (1) election commissioner.

(b) At the general election in 2023 and every four (4) years thereafter, the qualified electors of the board of supervisors' Districts Two and Four shall elect in their district one (1) election commissioner.

(c) No more than one (1) commissioner shall be a resident of and reside in each supervisor's district of the county; it being the purpose of this section that the county board of election commissioners shall consist of one (1) person from each supervisor's district of the county and that each commissioner be elected from the supervisor's district in which he or she resides.

(3) Candidates for county election commissioner shall qualify by filing with the clerk of the board of supervisors of their respective counties a petition personally signed by not less than fifty (50) qualified electors of the supervisor's district in which they reside, requesting that they be a candidate, by 5:00 p.m. not later than February 1 of the year in which the election occurs and unless the petition is filed within the required time, their names shall not be placed upon the ballot. All candidates shall declare in writing their party affiliation, if any, to the board of supervisors, and such party affiliation shall be shown on the official ballot.

(4) The petition shall have attached thereto a certificate of the county registrar showing the number of qualified electors on each petition, which shall be furnished by the registrar on request. The board shall determine the sufficiency of the petition, and if the petition contains the required number of signatures and is filed within the time required, the president of the board shall verify that the candidate is a resident of the supervisor's district in which he or she seeks election and that the candidate is otherwise qualified as provided by law, and shall certify that the candidate is qualified to the chair or secretary of the county election commission and the names of the candidates shall be placed upon the ballot for the ensuing election. No county election commissioner shall serve or be considered as elected until he or she has received a majority of the votes cast for the position or post for which he or she is a candidate. If a majority vote is not received in the first election, then the two (2) candidates receiving the most votes for each position or post shall be placed upon the ballot for a second election to be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks later in accordance with appropriate procedures followed in other elections involving runoff candidates.

(5) In the first meeting in January of each year, the county election commissioners shall organize by electing a chair and a secretary, who shall serve a one-year term. The county election commissioners shall provide the names of the chair and secretary to the Secretary of State and provide notice of any change in officers which may occur during the year.

(6) It shall be the duty of the chair to have the official ballot printed and distributed at each general or special election.

SECTION 4. 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)~~ four (4) weeks after the election. The two (2) candidates who receive the highest 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 vote, these two (2) and the one receiving the highest vote, none having received a majority, shall go into the runoff election and whoever 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. At any time a special election is held on the same day as a party primary election, the names of the candidates in the special election may be placed on the same ballot, but shall be clearly distinguished as special election candidates or primary election candidates.

SECTION 5. Section 23-15-981, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

23-15-981. If two (2) or more candidates qualify for judicial office, the names of those candidates shall be placed on the general election ballot. If any candidate for such an office receives a majority of the votes cast for such office in the general election, he shall be declared elected. If no candidate for such office receives a majority of the votes cast for such office in the general election, the names of the two (2) candidates receiving the highest number of votes for such office shall be placed on the ballot for a second election to be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks later in accordance with appropriate procedures followed in other elections involving runoff candidates.

SECTION 6. Section 23-15-1031, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

23-15-1031. Except as provided by Section 23-15-1081, the first primary election for Congressmen shall be held on the first Tuesday in June of the years in which congressmen are elected, and a second primary, if necessary, shall be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks thereafter. Each year in which a presidential election is held, the congressional primary shall be held as provided in Section 23-15-1081. The election shall be held in all districts of the state on the same day. Candidates for United States Senator shall be nominated at the congressional primary next preceding the general election at which a senator is to be elected and in the same manner that congressmen are nominated. The chair and secretary of the state executive committee shall certify the vote for United States Senator to the Secretary of State in the same manner that county executive committees certify the returns of counties in general state and county primary elections.

SECTION 7. Section 23-15-1083, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

23-15-1083. Beginning in 1988, as an alternative to the congressional primary election date set forth in Section 23-15-1031, when a political party elects to conduct a presidential preference primary, the first primary election for congressmen, and senators, if senators are to be elected, shall be held on the second Tuesday in March, and the second primary, when one is necessary, shall be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks thereafter, and the election shall be held in all districts of the state on the same day.

SECTION 8. Section 37-5-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-5-9. The name of any qualified elector who is a candidate for the county board of education shall be placed on the ballot used in the general elections by the county election commissioners, provided that the candidate files with the county election commissioners, not more than ninety (90) days and not less than sixty (60) days prior to the date of such general election, a petition of nomination signed by not less than fifty (50) qualified electors of the county residing within each supervisors district. Where there are less than one hundred (100) qualified electors in said supervisors district, it shall only be required that said petition of nomination be signed by at least twenty percent (20%) of the qualified electors of such supervisors district. The candidate in each supervisors district who receives the majority of votes cast in the district shall be declared elected. If no candidate receives a majority of the votes cast at the election, a runoff shall be held between the two (2) candidates receiving the highest number of votes in the first election. The runoff election, in the event that such is necessary, shall be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks after the first election.

When any member of the county board of education is to be elected from the county at large under the provisions of this chapter, then the petition required by the preceding paragraph hereof shall be signed by the required number of qualified electors residing in any part of the county outside of the territory embraced within a municipal separate school district or special municipal separate school district. The candidate who receives the majority of votes cast in the election shall be declared elected. If no candidate receives a majority of the votes cast at the election, a runoff shall be held between the two (2) candidates receiving the highest number of votes in the first election. The runoff election, in the event that such is necessary, shall be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks after the first election.

In no case shall any qualified elector residing within a municipal separate school district or special municipal separate school district be eligible to sign a petition of nomination for any candidate for the county board of education under any of the provisions of this section.

SECTION 9. Section 37-7-215, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-7-215. All such elections shall be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of each year and in the same manner as general state and county elections are held and conducted. In the event a runoff is necessary the runoff shall be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks thereafter.

SECTION 10. Section 37-7-217, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-7-217. (1) The county election commissioners shall indicate on the ballot which of the persons whose names appear thereon are candidates for a full term, and which of such persons, if any, are candidates for an unexpired term or terms.

(2) The qualified electors of each school district operating under Section 37-7-215 shall vote on the date specified in that section and at the special trustee election districts.

(3) A person elected shall assume the duties of his office for the full term on the first day of January if the election is for the full term. A person elected to an unexpired term shall assume office immediately.

(4) The county election commissioners shall forthwith certify the results of the election to the superintendent of the municipal separate or special municipal separate school district, as the case may be, which certificate shall be delivered to such superintendent within five (5) days following the first election.

(5) If a person does not receive a majority of the votes cast at the election, a runoff shall be held between the two (2) persons receiving the highest number of votes at the first election. In the event a runoff is necessary, the runoff shall be held four (4) weeks thereafter.

SECTION 11. Section 37-7-227, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-7-227. (1) The county election commissioners shall indicate on the ballot which of the persons whose names appear thereon are candidates for a full term, and which of such persons, if any, are candidates for an unexpired term or terms. The candidate who receives a majority of the votes cast, either for a full term or for an unexpired term or terms, as indicated on the ballot, shall be declared elected, and the person or persons elected to a full term shall assume the duties of his office on the first day of January of the year following such election. The person or persons elected to an unexpired term(s) shall assume office immediately. If no candidate receives a majority of the votes cast at the election, a runoff shall be held in the same manner * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks after the election between the two (2) candidates receiving the highest number of votes upon the first ballot.

(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if an election for school board trustees occurs on a Tuesday, during a general election, any runoff for such election shall occur * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks after the election.

SECTION 12. Section 37-7-711, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-7-711. In all such special municipal separate school districts which may be so organized, reorganized or reconstituted to embrace the entire county in which the majority of the inhabitants of the county reside outside the corporate limits of the municipality, the name of any qualified elector who is a candidate for the board of trustees of such special municipal separate school district, whether such person be a candidate for an unexpired term or for a full term, shall be placed on the ballot used in the elections, provided that the candidate files with the county election commissioners, not more than ninety (90) days and not less than sixty (60) days prior to the date of such general election, a petition of nomination signed by not less than fifty (50) qualified electors of the county. Where there are less than one hundred (100) qualified electors in said area represented by the trustee, it shall only be required that said petition of nomination be signed by at least twenty percent (20%) of the qualified electors in said area. However, in any such special municipal separate school district which embraces the entire county and which borders the Mississippi River and in which Interstate Highway 20 and United States Highway 61 intersect and having a population in excess of forty-seven thousand (47,000) according to the 1990 federal decennial census, the candidate shall be required to file a petition of nomination with the county election commissioners not less than sixty (60) days prior to the date of such general election, in addition to the other requirements prescribed herein.

The candidate in each election who receives the majority of votes cast in the election shall be declared to have been elected. If no candidate receives a majority of the votes cast at the election, a runoff shall be held between the two (2) candidates receiving the highest number of votes in the first election. The runoff election, in the event that such is necessary, shall be held * * * ~~three (3)~~ four (4) weeks after the first election.

SECTION 13. (1) Ranked-choice voting, also known as instant runoff voting, is prohibited in statewide, county, local, municipal and school district elections in the State of Mississippi.

(2) Any voting method that allows electors to rank candidates for an office in order of preference and has ballots cast that will be tabulated in multiple rounds following the elimination of a candidate until a single candidate attains a majority shall not be used in determining the election or nomination of any candidate for elective office in this state, including elective offices for any county, municipality, school district, state or federal office.

(3) Any existing or future ordinance or policy enacted or adopted by a county, municipality, school district, or any other local governmental entity that conflicts with this section is void on and after July 1, 2024.

(4) This section shall not apply to electors who are entitled to vote absentee ballot under the federal Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, 52 USC Section 20301 et seq., as amended.

SECTION 14. Section 13 of this act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2024. The remainder of this act shall take effect and be in force from and after January 1, 2025.