Mississippi Senate Ballots Rejected Over Poll Worker Errors—‘Makes Me Sick’
Summary
Mississippi officials are reviewing thousands of affidavit ballots in a close U.S. Senate race between Democrat Scott Colom and Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith. Voting advocates and Democrat Brandon Presley have raised concerns that some ballots were rejected because poll workers missed required steps, while the state continues processing ballots and counties prepare to certify results.Key Facts
- The Associated Press reported Colom leading Hyde-Smith by 3,037 votes, with 98 percent of votes counted; the race had not been called.
- Affidavit ballots are cast when election officials cannot immediately verify a voter's eligibility and require later review.
- Mississippi rules require a poll worker to initial the ballot and both the voter and a poll worker to sign the affidavit envelope.
- Presley said he was referring to cases where poll workers signed the affidavit envelope but failed to initial the ballot.
- Secretary of State Michael Watson said 15,547 affidavit ballots had been processed, with about 76 percent accepted, and 2,578 absentee ballots remained outstanding.
- A voting rights advocate monitoring Harrison County reported that officials accepted 746 affidavit ballots and rejected 704 on Wednesday.
- Sonya Williams-Barnes of the Southern Poverty Law Center said Harrison County's affidavit ballots would be put through counting machines Thursday morning.
- Mississippi counties must certify their results by November 13.
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