Lauderdale County Election Commissioners are hard at work trying to educate voters ahead of a complicated election season while staying on top of a long to-do list of their own.

 

In a Council of Governments meeting Monday, Commissioner Gloria Dancy said the county election officials are gearing up for both municipal primary elections, special elections and the possibility of competing runoffs. Residents of House District 82, which includes most of west Meridian, will head to the polls for a special election on March 25 to fill a vacancy left by Rep. Charles Young Jr., who died in December.

 

A week later, Meridianites will vote in primary elections for mayoral candidates, as well as candidates for each of the five city council seats.

 

“We’re busy,” she said. “We’re trying to figure out things that have never happened before.”

 

Dancy said the Commission is bracing for some voter confusion, especially around the special election. That election will only be for residents of House District 82, which residents can check on their voter registration cards, she said.

 

“You will not be able to vote in the special unless you have that 82 at the bottom of your voter registration card,” she said. “And so they’re going to have to look at that because people are going to come in and they’re going to find out their name is not in that book because they’re not in that district.”

 

Although cities are responsible for conducting their own municipal elections, the county election commissioners have signed on to help the City of Meridian and also lend some support to Marion. Marion voters will also select a new mayor and five aldermen this year, however candidates run at large in nonpartisan elections, meaning they will not have a primary election and will head straight to the general election in June.

 

In Meridian, however, the possibility of runoff elections could cause a headache for both elections officials and city voters. Three candidates are running for House District 82, and one candidate must receive at least 50% of the vote plus one vote to avoid a runoff election. If needed, the runoff would be held April 22.

 

In the municipal elections, a runoff election on the Democratic ticket is possible with four candidates running for mayor, five for Ward 3 Council member and three candidates for Ward 5 Council member. If needed, that runoff election would also be held April 22.

 

The issue, Dancy said, is that some voters have different precincts for city elections than for county elections. In the event of runoff elections, those residents would have to vote at two entirely different precincts. For example, a voter might have to go to the Boys and Girls Club of East Mississippi to vote in the city runoff election then drive over to Prince Of Peace to vote in the House District 82 runoff, she said.

 

“That’s not going to sit well with a lot of people that they’re going to two different precincts,” she said.

 

Election Commissioner Chuck Overby said one of his voting locations at Trinity Presbyterian Church already manages two different precincts, with residents of both Ward 1 and Ward 5 using it to cast their votes. Already a challenge, he said this year’s election schedule makes that precinct even more difficult to manage.

 

“It’s a possibility that if it’s a runoff in the special, I’ll have three elections going on in one location,” he said.

 

Dancy said commissioners plan to begin logic and accuracy testing the voting machines next week for both the special and municipal elections. Machines will be sent out to the precinct locations the day before the election, she said.

 

As they get ready to head to the polls, residents are encouraged to check their voter registration cards to make sure they go to the correct precinct. Those who may have misplaced their card can find their polling place online at sos.ms.gov/yall-vote.