Bill Text: MS SB2586 | 2026 | Regular Session | Introduced

Mississippi Senate Bill 2586

Introduced

Bill Title: Election commissioners; outline duties of.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)

Status: (Failed) 2026-02-03 - Died In Committee [SB2586 Detail]

Download: Mississippi-2026-SB2586-Introduced.html

MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

2026 Regular Session

To: Elections

By: Senator(s) England

Senate Bill 2586

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 23-15-213, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO OUTLINE DUTIES OF ELECTION COMMISSIONERS; TO REQUIRE THAT TO PERFORM SAID DUTIES, ELECTION COMMISSIONERS MUST BE ISSUED CERTAIN OFFICE SPACE AND SUPPLIES TO WORK WITH; TO AMEND SECTIONS 23-15-215 AND 23-15-221, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CONFORM; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 23-15-213, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

[Until December 31, 2027, this section shall read as follows:]

23-15-213. (1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, there shall be elected five (5) election commissioners for each county whose terms of office shall commence on the first Monday of January following their election and who shall serve for a term of four (4) years. Each of the commissioners shall be required to attend a training seminar provided by the Secretary of State and satisfactorily complete a skills assessment, and before acting, shall take and subscribe the oath of office prescribed by the Constitution. The oath shall be filed in the office of the clerk of the chancery court. Upon filing the oath of office, the election commissioner may be provided access to the Statewide Elections Management System for the purpose of performing his or her duties. Such skills assessment shall only be required once every four (4) years. While engaged in their duties, the commissioners shall be conservators of the peace in the county, with all the duties and powers of such.

(2) (a) At the general election in 2024 and every four (4) years thereafter, the qualified electors of the board of supervisors' Districts One, Three and Five shall elect in their district one (1) election commissioner.

(b) At the general election in 2027, the qualified electors of the board of supervisors' Districts Two and Four shall elect in their district one (1) election commissioner, who shall serve for a term of three (3) years.

(c) No more than one (1) commissioner shall be a resident of and reside in each supervisor's district of the county; it being the purpose of this section that the county board of election commissioners shall consist of one (1) person from each supervisor's district of the county and that each commissioner be elected from the supervisor's district in which he or she resides.

(3) Candidates for county election commissioner shall qualify by filing with the clerk of the board of supervisors of their respective counties a petition personally signed by not less than fifty (50) qualified electors of the supervisor's district in which they reside, requesting that they be a candidate, by 5:00 p.m. not later than February 1 of the year in which the election occurs and unless the petition is filed within the required time, their names shall not be placed upon the ballot. All candidates shall declare in writing their party affiliation, if any, to the board of supervisors, and such party affiliation shall be shown on the official ballot.

(4) The petition shall have attached thereto a certificate of the county registrar showing the number of qualified electors on each petition, which shall be furnished by the registrar on request. The board shall determine the sufficiency of the petition, and if the petition contains the required number of signatures and is filed within the time required, the president of the board shall verify that the candidate is a resident of the supervisor's district in which he or she seeks election and that the candidate is otherwise qualified as provided by law, and shall certify that the candidate is qualified to the chair or secretary of the county election commission and the names of the candidates shall be placed upon the ballot for the ensuing election. No county election commissioner shall serve or be considered as elected until he or she has received a majority of the votes cast for the position or post for which he or she is a candidate. If a majority vote is not received in the first election, then the two (2) candidates receiving the most votes for each position or post shall be placed upon the ballot for a second election to be held four (4) weeks later in accordance with appropriate procedures followed in other elections involving runoff candidates.

(5) In the first meeting in January of each year, the county election commissioners shall organize by electing a chair and a secretary, who shall serve a one-year term. The county election commissioners shall provide the names of the chair and secretary to the Secretary of State and provide notice of any change in officers which may occur during the year.

(6) It shall be the duty of the chair to have the official ballot printed and distributed at each general or special election.

(7) In addition to the duties listed above, election commissioners shall also be required to:

(a) Obtain proper certification by successfully passing the yearly skills assessment from the Secretary of State's Office, in order to conduct all state and/or county elections;

(b) Have proficient computer skills and the ability to perform basic computer functions;

(c) Possess proficient knowledge of Microsoft Office products, such as, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel and Microsoft PowerPoint;

(d) Maintain adequate knowledge and skills to properly operate the SEMS systems;

(e) Obtain access to SEMS in order to change voter status, purge voters, merge voters, run necessary reports, run poll books and build elections necessary for municipal and county elections;

(f) Be familiar with and have a working knowledge of all the voting equipment used;

(g) Possess the ability to test the voting equipment used;

(h) Have basic knowledge of how to build and use test decks used to test the scanning voting equipment used;

(i) Train poll managers on all applicable state and federal voting laws and to properly conduct elections according to the Mississippi Elections Code, as well how to properly use the voting equipment;

(j) Maintain the voter roles for the County and District by:

(i) Possessing access to all areas dealing with voter roll management in SEMS in order to change voter status, purge voters when necessary, change voters to other voting districts in the state and run necessary reports; and

(ii) Keeping voting records for all districts;

(k) Have knowledge of how to create security devices on all voting devices;

(l) If used, have knowledge on how to upload data onto electronic poll books as well as retrieving final election data after the election concludes;

(m) Maintain current knowledge of all statutes governing the election processes, including:

(i) Knowing election and polling place protocols;

(ii) Being able to determine voter polling sites, if necessary;

(iii) Knowing how to address breaches of statute by a voter, candidate, poll manager and/or poll watchers; and

(iv) Counting ballots, canvasing election results and certifying elections;

(n) Keep proper minutes of all Election Commission meetings available for public inspection;

(o) Be familiar with proper procedure, according to the Mississippi Ethics Division, when visitors attend one (1) of the meetings of the Election Commission; and

(p) Be familiar with the procedure when an election is challenged.

(8) In order to fulfill all the duties listed above, the following materials shall be issued to all Election Commissioners:

(a) A proper office space for each commissioner;

(b) A computer, equipped with a printer;

(d) An office copy machine;

(e) Desk top scanners for each commissioner;

(f) Adequate storage space for election materials and supplies; and

(g) Proper storage space for voting machines, if machines are to be stored in the election commissioner's office.

[From and after January 1, 2028, this section shall read as follows:]

23-15-213. (1) There shall be elected five (5) election commissioners for each county whose terms of office shall commence on the first Monday of January following their election and who shall serve for a term of four (4) years. Each of the commissioners shall be required to attend a training seminar provided by the Secretary of State and satisfactorily complete a skills assessment, and before acting, shall take and subscribe the oath of office prescribed by the Constitution. The oath shall be filed in the office of the clerk of the chancery court. Upon filing the oath of office, the election commissioner may be provided access to the Statewide Elections Management System for the purpose of performing his or her duties. Such skills assessment shall only be required once every four (4) years. While engaged in their duties, the commissioners shall be conservators of the peace in the county, with all the duties and powers of such.

(2) (a) At the general election in 2028 and every four (4) years thereafter, the qualified electors of the board of supervisors' Districts One, Three and Five shall elect in their district one (1) election commissioner.

(b) At the general election in 2030 and every four (4) years thereafter, the qualified electors of the board of supervisors' Districts Two and Four shall elect in their district one (1) election commissioner.

(6) It shall be the duty of the chair to have the official ballot printed and distributed at each general or special election.

(7) In addition to the duties listed above, election commissioners shall also be required to:

(a) Obtain proper certification by successfully passing the yearly skills assessment from the Secretary of State's Office, in order to conduct all state and/or county elections;

(b) Have proficient computer skills and the ability to perform basic computer functions;

(c) Possess proficient knowledge of Microsoft Office products, such as, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel and Microsoft PowerPoint;

(d) Maintain adequate knowledge and skills to properly operate the SEMS systems;

(e) Obtain access to SEMS in order to change voter status, purge voters, merge voters, run necessary reports, run poll books and build elections necessary for municipal and county elections;

(f) Be familiar with and have a working knowledge of all the voting equipment used;

(g) Possess the ability to test the voting equipment used;

(h) Have basic knowledge of how to build and use test decks used to test the scanning voting equipment used;

(i) Train poll managers on all applicable state and federal voting laws and to properly conduct elections according to the Mississippi Elections Code, as well as how to properly use the voting equipment;

(j) Maintain the voter roles for the County and District by:

(ii) Keeping voting records for all districts;

(k) Have knowledge of how to create security devices on all voting devices;

(l) If used, have knowledge on how to upload data onto electronic poll books as well as retrieving final election data after the election concludes;

(m) Maintain current knowledge of all statutes governing the election processes, including:

(i) Knowing election and polling place protocols;

(ii) Being able to determine voter polling sites, if necessary;

(iii) Knowing how to address breaches of statute by a voter, candidate, poll manager and/or poll watchers; and

(iv) Counting ballots, canvasing election results and certifying elections;

(n) Keep proper minutes of all Election Commission meetings available for public inspection;

(o) Be familiar with proper procedure, according to the Mississippi Ethics Division, when visitors attend one (1) of the meetings of the Election Commission; and

(p) Be familiar with the procedure when an election is challenged.

(8) In order to fulfill all the duties listed above, the following materials shall be issued to all Election Commissioners:

(a) A proper office space for each commissioner;

(b) A computer, equipped with a printer;

(d) An office copy machine;

(e) Desk top scanners for each commissioner;

(f) Adequate storage space for election materials and supplies; and

(g) Proper storage space for voting machines, if machines are to be stored in the election commissioner's office.

SECTION 2. Section 23-15-215, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

23-15-215. If there shall not be election commissioners in any county, or if they fail to act, the duties prescribed for them shall be performed by the board of supervisors. In such case, the president of the board is charged with the duty of having the official ballot printed and distributed; and the poll managers shall make returns to the board, which shall canvass the returns, give certificates of election, and make report to the Secretary of State, in like manner as the election commissioners are required to do. The board shall also be required to maintain the knowledge, skills and tasks assigned to election commissioners in Section 23-15-213(7).

SECTION 3. Section 23-15-221, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

23-15-221. (1) The governing authorities of municipalities having a population of less than twenty thousand (20,000) inhabitants according to the last federal decennial census shall appoint three (3) election commissioners; the governing authorities of municipalities having a population of twenty thousand (20,000) inhabitants or more and less than one hundred thousand (100,000) inhabitants according to the last federal decennial census shall appoint five (5) election commissioners; and the governing authorities of municipalities having a population of one hundred thousand (100,000) or more according to the last federal decennial census shall appoint seven (7) election commissioners. The municipal election commissioners, in conjunction with the municipal clerk, shall perform all the duties in respect to the municipal election prescribed by law to be performed by the county election commissioners where not otherwise provided. The election commissioners shall, in case there be but one (1) election precinct in the municipality, act as poll managers themselves.

(2) The city council or board of aldermen or other governing authority of any municipality desiring to avail itself of the provisions of the Mississippi Election Code regarding the duties of municipal election commissioners shall adopt an ordinance declaring its intention to enter into an agreement with the municipality's county to have the county election commissioners conduct municipal elections and other functions that are performed by municipal election commissioners for the benefit of the efficiency and conformity of elections, to be effective on and after a date fixed in the ordinance which must be at least thirty (30) days after the ordinance is adopted and on the first day of a month. If the municipality is located in more than one (1) county, the municipality shall choose which county it wants to conduct its elections and other duties of its municipal election commissioners and enter into an agreement with that county to have that county's election commissioners conduct the municipal elections and other functions that are performed by municipal election commissioners for the benefit of the efficiency and conformity of elections, to be effective on and after a date fixed in the ordinance which must be at least thirty (30) days after the ordinance is adopted and on the first day of a month. A certified copy of this ordinance shall be immediately forwarded to the Chair of the State Board of Election Commissioners. The municipal authorities shall have a copy of the ordinance published once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks in at least one (1) newspaper published in the municipality and having a general circulation therein. The first publication shall be not less than twenty-eight (28) days before the effective date fixed in the ordinance, and the last publication shall be made not less than seven (7) days before such date. If no newspaper is published in the municipality, then notice shall be given by publishing the ordinance for the required time in some newspaper published in the same or an adjoining county having a general circulation in the municipality. A copy of the ordinance shall also be posted at three (3) public places in the municipality for a period of at least twenty-one (21) days during the time of its publication in a newspaper. The publication of the ordinance may be made as provided in Section 21-17-19. Proof of publication must also be furnished to the Chair of the State Board of Election Commissioners.

(3) If a city council or board of aldermen or other governing authority of any municipality adopts an ordinance to abolish municipal election commissioners in the municipality's county and authorize county election commissioners to conduct the municipal election commissioners' duties, the county election commissioners shall conduct all of the duties of the municipal election commissioners including, but not limited to:

(a) Canvass the results of bond elections in a municipality;

(b) Canvass the returns of special and general elections for mayor and councilmen and within five (5) days after any special or general election, deliver to each person receiving the highest number of votes a certificate of election;

(c) Certify to the Secretary of State the name or names of the person or persons elected at special and general elections within ten (10) days after any special or general election;

(d) Revise the primary pollbooks for municipalities at the time and in the manner and in accordance with the laws now fixed and in force for revising pollbooks, except they shall not remove from the pollbook any person who is qualified to participate in primary elections;

(e) Print the pollbooks that are to be used in municipal elections;

(f) Print and distribute the "official ballots";

(g) Perform the duties of poll managers in the event there is only one (1) election precinct in the municipality;

(h) Perform any of the duties required of the municipal executive committee pursuant to Section 23-15-239 if the municipal executive committee has entered into a written agreement with the municipal clerk or the municipal or county election commission that gives such authorization;

(i) Determine whether each party candidate in the municipal general election is a qualified elector of the municipality, and of the ward if the office sought is a ward office, whether each candidate either meets all other qualifications to hold the office he or she is seeking or presents absolute proof that he or she will, subject to no contingencies, meet all qualifications on or before the date of the general or special election at which he or she could be elected to office, and whether any candidate has been convicted of any felony in a court of this state, or has been convicted on or after December 8, 1992, of any offense in another state which is a felony under the laws of this state, or has been convicted of any felony in a federal court on or after December 8, 1992;

(j) Declare each candidate elected without opposition, if the candidate meets all the qualifications to hold the office as determined pursuant to a review by the commission in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (i) of this subsection (3);

(k) Canvass the returns for municipal elections received from all voting precincts and within ten (10) days after the election, deliver to each person receiving the highest number of votes a certificate of election. If it shall appear that any two (2) or more of the candidates receiving the highest number of votes shall have received an equal number of votes, the election shall be decided by the toss of a coin or by lot, fairly and publicly drawn by the election commissioners;

(l) Transmit the statement provided in Section 23-15-611 to the Secretary of State certifying the name or names of the person or persons elected at municipal elections, and such person or persons shall be issued commissions by the Governor;

(m) Receiving the filed document by any person desiring to contest the qualifications of another person who has qualified pursuant to the provisions of Section 23-15-361 as a candidate for municipal office elected on the date designated by law for regular municipal elections that specifically sets forth the grounds of the challenge no later than thirty-one (31) days after the date of the first primary election set forth in Section 23-15-309; and

(n) Perform all other duties with respect to the municipal election prescribed by law.

(4) If the city council or board of aldermen or other governing authority of any municipality does not desire to avail itself of the provisions of the Mississippi Election Code regarding the duties of municipal election commissioners, then nothing in this section shall be construed in any way to affect, alter or modify the existence of those municipal election commissioners now operating under the laws relating to municipal election commissioners provided in the Mississippi Code of 1972. Those municipalities shall continue to enjoy the form of election commissions and the conduct of the respective elections that are now enjoyed by them, and each shall possess all rights, powers, privileges and immunities granted and conferred under the laws relating to municipal election commissioners provided in the Mississippi Code of 1972.

(5) All municipal election commissioners, or municipal governing authorities performing the duties of election commissioners, shall also be required to maintain the knowledge, skills and tasks assigned to election commissioners in Section 23-15-213(7).

SECTION 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2026.