What to know before voting in Mississippi’s congressional primaries

Congressional primaries are happening in Mississippi on Tuesday, March 10, with all four of the state’s U.S. House seats and one of its two U.S. Senate seats up for grabs this year. In total, there are seven contested races across the Republican and Democratic primaries.

Here are some facts about the election and what to know before going to the polls.

Who can vote?

Any voter registered before or by Feb. 9 in Mississippi can vote. There are contested primaries in House District 1, House District 2, and House District 4. Both the Republican and Democratic sides of the U.S. Senate race are contested, as well.

With Mississippi having open primaries, voters do not register by party affiliation. Upon arriving at a polling place, a voter chooses which party’s ballot they want. If a runoff is required, voters must return to the same party’s primary they participated in, unless they did not vote in the initial primary.

When are polls open?

Polls are open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. Secretary of State Michael Watson, whose office manages elections, reminds voters that anyone in line before 7 p.m. is legally entitled to cast a ballot. Polling locations can be verified here.

Voters should bring a photo ID to their polling location. A list of acceptable photo IDs can be found here. Voters without an acceptable form of photo ID are entitled to cast an affidavit ballot and then return to their circuit clerk’s office with a photo ID in the days after the election for their ballot to count.

Who’s running?

The race for House District 3 is the only one without contested primaries. Incumbent Republican Rep. Michael Guest is unopposed, while Michael Chiaradio did not draw any opponents on the Democratic side. In House District 1, Republican Rep. Trent Kelly did not draw any challengers either. In total, there are seven contested primaries.

After the polls close, live election results can be tracked at supertalk.fm/elections. Additionally, SuperTalk Mississippi News will share results as they come in on participating talk, music, and affiliate stations.

The following primaries are contested:

U.S. House District 1

Democrat

U.S. House District 2

Democrat

Republican

U.S. House District 4

Republican

Mike Ezell (incumbent)
Sawyer Walters

Democrat

U.S. Senate

Republican

Cindy Hyde-Smith (incumbent)
Sarah Adlakha

Democrat

What will turnout look like?

That’s hard to predict, but if history repeats itself, turnout will be low. According to Watson’s office, approximately 11% of voters participated in the 2022 congressional primaries.

Watson said last Tuesday that his office had only sent around 9,000 absentee ballots. As of Friday, a total of 13,475 ballots had been cast.

“I hope folks are making plans now (to vote). We’ve got a really low turnout so far,” he said. “It’s terrible for Mississippi. We’ve got to do better.”

What if I have questions about the voting process?

Residents can receive personalized election information through the My Election Day and Y’all Vote resources provided by the Mississippi Secretary of State’s Office. The office also recently launched a new platform for voters to access important election information and report issues through text messaging.

Questions on the voting process can be directed to [email protected] or by calling 1-800-829-6786.

When is the next election?

Following the Tuesday, March 10, primaries, if any runoffs are necessary, they will be held on Tuesday, April 7. The general election will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 3.