Rob Pillow

PSA: I want everyone in Mississippi who attempted to vote to have their votes counted, whether they voted Republican or Democrat. I’m getting inundated with questions about affidavit ballots. I hope this information helps some people. A lot more people had to vote by affidavit than expected this cycle in Mississippi. I’ve heard estimates ranging from 12,000-18,000. In a tight race, this is a huge number. There are people speculating about why that is, but I’m not going to do that right now. I do want to share some information in case you found yourself in these circumstances. Affidavits are different from absentee ballots. They occur when someone goes into their precinct, but for some reason their names do not appear on the voter rolls, OR in instances where someone might forget their IDs. When either of these things happen, the voter swears by affidavit that he or she is registered to vote in that precinct and they cast a provisional ballot (subject to the acceptance of the affidavit). In the case of not being on the rolls, it then becomes election officials’ job to determine if you are actually registered to vote. The Secretary of State’s website includes a portal to check whether your affidavit has been accepted. In the case of not having your ID, under Mississippi Code § 23-15-563, you have 5 business days to bring it in to your county circuit clerk’s office. In effect, this becomes 7 days (since weekends don’t count), meaning you have until Tuesday, November 10th at close of business. I have seen reports from people I know who voted by affidavit that the Secretary of State’s website shows that their affidavit was not accepted. This could be because your county has not completed their review yet. The current guide instructs voters to wait 10 days to inquire. This is because, by law, election commissioners in your county have 10 days or through November 13th to finish the process of approving affidavits. That said, I think you’d be well within your rights to contact your Circuit Clerk or Election Commissioner to inquire. The administrative code related to this body of law, says either may be contacted. I’m going to leave additional information below that you can follow to identify whether your ballot has been accepted and who you would need to talk to if not. This portal is where you can check on the status of your affidavit: myelectionday.sos.state.ms.u… This is where you can find contact information for your Circuit Clerk or Election Commissioner by County: sos.ms.gov/elections-voting/…