Some polling places will open for Municipal Party Primary Runoff Elections at 7 a.m. tomorrow, Tuesday, May 16, 2017. Polls where runoffs are being conducted will close at 7 p.m. Any voter in line at 7 p.m. is entitled to cast a ballot.
Primary Runoff Elections are only conducted in those cities in which certain party candidates did not receive a majority of the votes cast in the Primary Elections held May 2, 2017, to win the party’s nomination for municipal office. Voters should contact their Municipal Clerk’s Office or local election officials to find out whether Primary Runoff Elections will be held in their city tomorrow, May 16, 2017.
“Even if you did not cast a ballot on Primary Election Day, you are permitted to cast a ballot in the runoff,” Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann said. “Governance begins as the ballot box, so I encourage all Mississippians residing in areas where a runoff race is taking place to take the time to vote tomorrow.”
Crossover voting is not permitted, meaning voters who cast a ballot in one political party’s Primary Election on May 2 cannot legally cast a ballot in a different political party’s Primary Runoff Election tomorrow, May 16.
Municipal Primary Runoff Elections are conducted by political parties and municipal election officials. The Secretary of State’s Office will have observers in several municipalities across the State. Problems at the polls observed by Secretary of State staff or otherwise reported to the Elections Division will be referred to the proper municipal election officials or law enforcement authorities. The Secretary of State’s staff has no enforcement authority to resolve problems.
Other important information for Election Day includes:
- Polling Place Location: A polling place locator is available on the Secretary of State’s website at http://www.sos.ms.gov/PollingPlace/Pages/default.aspx. Voters can also contact their Municipal Clerk for their polling place location.
- Voter Photo ID: Voters are required to show photo identification at the polls. A voter without an acceptable form of photo identification is entitled to cast an affidavit ballot. An affidavit ballot may be counted if the voter provides an acceptable form of photo identification to the Municipal Clerk’s Office within five business days (5 p.m. on May 23, 2017) after the election. For more information, visit www.msvoterID.ms.gov.
- Campaigning: It is unlawful to campaign for any candidate within 150 feet of any entrance to a polling place, unless on private property.
- Loitering: The polling places should be clear for 30 feet from every entrance of all people except elections officials, voters waiting to vote, or authorized poll watchers.
- Camera Phones: Voters are prohibited from taking pictures of their marked ballot. Poll watchers are prohibited from taking pictures of voters casting a ballot, a marked ballot, the pollbooks and the receipt books in the polling place.
