Mississippi Senate Race Hangs on Thousands of Outstanding Affidavit Ballots
With less than a busload of votes separating Democratic Senate candidate Scott Colom and incumbent Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R), the shockingly tight Mississippi race may come down to the count of provisional ballots. The margin leaves the outcome of the contest hanging in the balance as election officials begin the process of reviewing uncounted paper.
Like other states, Mississippi permits voters who do not appear on local polling precinct registration records to cast a provisional, or affidavit, ballot. Yet this year, Mississippians cast huge numbers of these votes. Secretary of State Michael Watson (R) flagged 230,000 voter registrations as “inactive,” leaving affected individuals no choice but to use an affidavit ballot if they wanted to participate on Election Day.
The Colom campaign estimated that between 10,000 and 15,000 affidavit ballots remained outstanding late Tuesday night, according to Mississippi Today. Speaking to supporters Wednesday morning, Colom urged voters to confirm their ballots are successfully verified and counted.
“We will protect the process of this election. We will protect the integrity of this election,” Colom said.
State Law Sets Strict Rules for Counting Affidavit Ballots
Mississippi election authorities are required by state statute to tally affidavit ballots provided that the individual was previously registered in the specific precinct where they tried to cast a ballot, both the participant and the precinct poll manager correctly endorsed the affidavit ballot envelope, and valid voter identification is furnished within five business days following Election Day. Fulfillment of the law’s verification requirements is met by individuals who presented identification to local poll workers on Election Day.
Election officials will review these ballots alongside mail-in votes arriving within the state’s five-day grace period for votes postmarked by Election Day. Those figures will be added to the final tally over the next few days, a process drawing scrutiny from both campaigns.
Unlike most states, Mississippi doesn’t have a recount law. Instead, candidates can try to sue to exclude or include certain ballots from the final count. Acting on behalf of the Colom campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, the Elias Law Group (ELG) is actively participating in the ongoing legal initiatives.
Mississippi’s certification deadline for local election offices is Nov. 13, and the state’s certification deadline is Dec. 3.
