State of Mississippi Elections & Voting
Election Day is November 8
- September 24 First day of in-person absentee voting at the circuit clerk’s office
- October 10 Deadline to postmark mailed-in voter registrations and to register in person
- November 5 Last day of in-person absentee voting at the circuit clerk’s office
- November 8 Deadline to postmark mailed-in absentee ballots
- November 8 Election Day
To register to vote in Mississippi, you must be:
- A resident of Mississippi and the county, city, or town for 30 days prior to the election
- At least 18 years old by election day
- Not declared mentally incompetent by a court; and
- Not convicted of a disenfranchising crime as defined by Section 241 of the Mississippi Constitution or by Attorney General Opinion, unless pardoned, rights of citizenship restored by the Governor or suffrage rights restored by the Legislature.
How to register to vote:
- Register by mail: Complete a Mail-In Voter Registration Application. Provide the information requested, including your driver’s license number and/or the last four digits of your Social Security number. If you do not provide your driver’s license number or the last four digits of your Social Security number, you must send with your application:
- A copy of a current and valid photo ID; or
- A copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows your name and address
- Register in person at the following locations:
- Circuit Clerk’s Office
- Municipal Clerk’s Office
- Department of Public Safety
- Any state or federal agency offering government services, such as the Department of Human Services.
- You must register to vote 30 days before the date of the election.
Voter ID Requirements
All Mississippi voters casting a ballot in person at the polls or casting an absentee ballot in the Circuit or Municipal Clerk’s Office must present one of the following forms of acceptable photo ID:
- A driver’s license
- A government issued photo ID card
- A United States passport
- A government employee photo identification card
- A firearms license
- A student photo ID issued by an accredited Mississippi university, college, or community/junior college
- A United States military photo ID
- A tribal photo ID
- Any other photo ID issued by any branch, department, agency or entity of the United States government or any State government
- A Mississippi Voter Identification Card
If you do not present an acceptable form of photo ID or are unable to do so because of a religious objection, you are entitled to cast an affidavit ballot. A voter casting an affidavit ballot because he/she did not present an acceptable form of photo ID may not have his/her ballot rejected for this reason if he/she presents an acceptable form of photo ID in the Circuit or Municipal Clerk’s Office within five business days after Election Day.
Absentee Voting
Voters unable to vote in person on Election Day may be eligible to vote by absentee ballot. Most absentee voters must appear before the Circuit Clerk or Municipal Clerk and absentee vote in person.
The following categories of people are entitled to vote by in-person absentee:
- College students who live away from their voting district
- Anyone who is away from their voting district on election day for any reason
- Anyone who has a physical disability and cannot vote in person without substantial hardship
- Anyone who is 65 or older
- Anyone who is required to work on election day during the times polls are open
The following categories of people are entitled to vote absentee by mail-in ballot:
- Any person who is temporarily residing outside of their county of residence, and the ballot must be mailed to an address outside the county.
- 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, herself or others, or whose attendance at the voting place could reasonably cause danger to himself, herself or others.
- The parent, spouse or dependent of a person with a temporary or permanent physical disability who is hospitalized outside of his or her county of residence or more than fifty (50) miles distant from his or her residence, if the parent, spouse or dependent will be with such person on election day.
- Any person who is sixty-five (65) years of age or older.
Resources
- In-Person Voting Access: An Advocacy Toolkit for Mississippi Organizers
- Guide for Voter Registration Drives in Iowa
- Mississippi Voter Information Guide 2022
- Choctaw Language Speakers Have Voting Rights!
- Native American Voting Rights (NAVRA)
- A Tribal Leaders Guide to Prepare for the Next Election
- Addressing: A Guide for Tribes
- Native Language Speakers Have Voting Rights!
- Examples of Voter Discrimination and Suppression in Indian Country
- Native Americans Depend on Ballot Collection
Tribes in Mississippi
Federally recognized tribes
- Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians
State recognized tribes
- None
Native Vote Coordinators
Sign up to be a local Native Vote coordinator today!
Major Party Contact Information
Democrat
Chairman, Bobby Moak
www.mississippidemocrats.org
Republican
Chairmain, Joe Nosef
www.msgop.org