Mississippi voters will head to the polls on Tuesday, March 10 to choose presidential and congressional candidates. The deadline to vote absentee for the primary election is Saturday, March 7, and the deadline to register to vote has passed. 

County circuit clerks’ offices across Mississippi will be open from 8 a.m. to noon Saturday, March 7 for those who need to vote through an absentee ballot and are unable to vote during regular hours on weekdays ahead of the primary election.

The sample Republican ballot from the Mississippi Secretary of State’s Office includes the following seats and candidates:

• U.S. President – Roque ‘Rocky’ De La Fuente, Donald Trump, Bill Weld

• U.S. Senate – Cindy Hyde-Smith

• U.S. House of Representatives 1st Congressional District – Trent Kelly 

• U.S. House of Representatives 2nd Congressional District – Thomas Carey, Brian Flowers, B.C. Hammond

• U.S. House of Representatives 3rd Congressional District – Michael Guest, James Tulp

• U.S. House of Representatives 4th Congressional District – Carl Boyanton, Robert Deming III, Samuel Hickman, Steven Palazzo

The sample Democratic ballot from the Mississippi Secretary of State’s Office includes the following seats and candidates:

• U.S. President – Joe Biden, Michael Bloomberg, Pete Buttigieg, Tulsi Gabbard, Amy Klobuchar, Deval Patrick, Bernie Sanders, Tom Steyer, Elizabeth Warren, Andrew Yang. (Deval Patrick and Andrew Yang have withdrawn from the race.) 

• U.S. Senate – Tobey Bernard Bartee, Jensen Bohren, Mike Espy

• U.S. House of Representatives 1st Congressional District – Antonia Eliason

• U.S. House of Representatives 2nd Congressional District – Sonia Rathburn, Bennie Thompson

• U.S. House of Representatives 3rd Congressional District – Dorothy ‘Dot’ Benford, Katelyn Lee 

Actress Sela Ward of Meridian and her husband, former Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Howard Sherman, have joined Bloomberg’s campaign as state co-chairs, according to a news release. 

“I hope you cherished women of Mississippi will join hands with me in supporting Mike,” Ward stated in the release. “This is a critical moment in our nation’s path. We must use our voice so that together we can dictate who we need in the White House, who will empower and protect us and our beloved children.” 

Bloomberg’s team has made stops in Hattiesburg and throughout the Delta and has plans to visit more Mississippi cities ahead of the primary election, a spokesperson said. 

More information

Voters must have a legal reason to vote absentee, such as plans to be out of town for vacation or a conference, surgery or work scheduled during the polling hours of 7 a.m. – to 7 p.m., according to Lauderdale County Circuit Clerk Donna Jill Johnson.

Students who attend school out of their voting area may also be eligible to vote absentee.

If an absentee ballot needs to be mailed, time is running out, Johnson said. 

Mississippi does not have early voting.