Mississippi

The polls must be open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Central Time on Election Day. A voter in line at the polling place by 7:00 p.m. must be allowed to vote.

Voters are required to go to their assigned polling place. Voters can determine the proper polling place by checking the Mississippi Secretary of State website’s Polling Place Locator for County elections. Polling places for Municipal elections may differ from the polling places for County elections. To find out where your polling place is for municipal elections, contact your County Circuit Clerk or Municipal Clerk.

Registration Deadlines

• For registration deadlines, see How to Register below.

How to Check Your Registration: Voters can determine whether they are registered to vote at the following link: Am I Registered?.

You are eligible to vote in Mississippi if you:

• Are a U.S. citizen
• Are at least 18 years old by Election Day
• Are a resident of Mississippi
• Live in the precinct where you vote for at least 30 days prior to the election

You are NOT eligible to vote in Mississippi if:

• You have been convicted of a disenfranchising crime as defined by Section 241 of the Mississippi Constitution or by Attorney General Opinion, unless pardoned, rights of citizenship restored by the Governor or suffrage rights restored by the Legislature.
• A judge has specifically ruled that you are not able to vote.

If you were convicted of any crime that’s not one of the 23 barred crimes, whether it was a felony or misdemeanor, you never lost your right to vote and you may register to vote and cast a ballot.

Restorative Requirements

• If your sentence is completed, you should apply to the Governor for a pardon if necessary. After you have been pardoned (or both houses of the state legislature have passed a bill restoring your voting rights), then you may register to vote and cast a ballot, even while you are on parole or probation.

How to register 

By Mail: Voters can register to vote by filling out the Mississippi Mail-In Voter Registration Application and sending the completed form to your County Circuit Clerk’s office.  

In Person: If a voter does not have access to a computer and/or printer, voter registration is available in person at the County Circuit Clerk’s office, the Municipal Clerk’s office, or at the Mississippi Department of Public Safety. Registration is also available in person at any state or federal agency offering government services, such as the Department of Human Services. 
Residency requirement: Every United States citizen has the right to vote in federal, state, and local elections as long as the voter is a resident of Mississippi and the county, city, or town for 30 days prior to the election for which they are registering to vote.

If You Want to Vote Absentee, requests may be made:

• In-Person
• By Mail
• Phone

Absentee Ballots may be returned:

• In-Person
• By Mail

Mississippi does not have general early voting, but voters may qualify for absentee voting in person or by mail and vote up to 45 days before Election Day. 

The most common absentee voters are:

• People who will be out of town on Election Day, 
• People over the age of 65,
• People who have to be at work during the polling hours on Election Day,
• People with temporary or permanent disabilities that make it especially hard to vote in person on Election Day, and
• Family members caring for a hospitalized person more than 50 miles from home.

A voter must visit their County Circuit Clerk’s Office to vote absentee in person.

To request a mail-in absentee ballot, voters should contact their County Circuit Clerk’s Office to request an application for a mail-in absentee ballot. 

Instructions for both mail-in and in-person absentee voting are available:  Absentee Voting Guide
For More information, call the Secretary of State’s Election hotline at 1-800-829-6786 or visit yallvote.ms.

Voter Registration

To register to vote in Mississippi you should provide one of the following:

• Last Four Digits of your Social Security Number
• Your Mississippi Driver’s License Number

If you live at a non-traditional address, you must include a drawing or map of your location

If you do not have any of these IDs, you can provide a copy of one of the following with your registration application:

• Current and Valid Photo ID
• Government Issued Document that shows your current name and address
• Utility Bill
• Government Check
• Bank Statement
• Paycheck that Shows your Current Name and Address

Registered voters can receive a Mississippi Voter Identification Card at no cost to the voter at any Circuit Clerk’s Office in the state. An application for a card may be made during normal business hours (8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.). Call 1-844-MSVOTER (1-844-678-6837) for information.

Voting In-Person

In Mississippi, you need to show a valid photo ID to vote. You can use any ID from this list:

• Valid ID with photo issued by a Government Agency
• Valid Government Employee ID
• Valid Mississippi Driver’s License
• Valid Mississippi Issued ID
• Valid US Passport
• License to Carry Concealed Weapon or Firearm
• Valid Student ID from State School
• Valid Military ID
• Valid Tribal ID
• Valid Mississippi Voter ID Card

You may use an expired photo ID as long as it is an acceptable form of photo ID and is not more than 10 years old. The expired ID must contain the name and photograph of the voter, and have been validly issued by the federal or a state government.

A registered voter who does not have valid identification is still entitled to vote by an affidavit ballot.

Photo identification is not required for absentee voters who return their ballots by mail.

If a registered voter does not have any of these acceptable forms of photo ID, a free Mississippi Voter Identification Card will be provided at no cost to the voter at any Circuit Clerk’s Office in Mississippi. Application for a card may be made during normal business hours (8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.). Call 1-844-MSVOTER (1-844-678-6837) for information.

A voter may use an expired photo ID as long as it is an acceptable form of photo ID and is not more than 10 years old. The expired ID must contain the name and photograph of the voter, and have been validly issued by the federal or a state government.

A voter may cast a provisional ballot if the identification the voter presents does not fairly depict the voter, or they present an acceptable photo ID but the name is not substantially similar to the voter’s name as it appears on the record of registered voters.

Moving within the Same Precinct: If a voter moved within the same county and has not re-registered with that address, they can vote with a provisional Affidavit Ballot. If they moved within the same voter precinct their polling place will have remained the same, and they may vote regardless of when they moved. 

Moving within the Same County but a Different Precinct:

If a voter moved within the county to a different voter precinct, they may vote at the polling place for their new address, provided they moved within the last 30 days.

Moving Between Counties: If a voter moved to a different county more than 30 days before the general election and has not re-registered with that address, they cannot vote, except for the President and Vice President in a Presidential election. If a voter moved to a different county within 30 days of the general election and has not re-registered with the new address, they may still vote for President and Vice President in their original voter precinct.
For More information, call the Secretary of State’s Election hotline at 1-800-829-6786 or visit yallvote.ms.

Voting Military

Service members and their dependents may register and request a ballot using the federal voter registration/ballot request form (“FPCA”). You will have the following identification options when completing the form:

• U.S. State or Territory or District Issued ID
• Option to Indicate that you do not have the Requested ID
• Last 4 Digits of your Social Security Number

Voting Overseas

U.S. citizens living overseas may register and request a ballot using the overseas voter registration/ballot request form. You will have the following identification options when completing the form:

• U.S. State or Territory or District Issued ID
• Option to Indicate that you do not have the Requested ID
• Last 4 Digits of your Social Security Number

Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA): Military and other overseas citizens may use the standard procedure for absentee voting by mail, but there are also special provisions for U.S. citizens residing outside of the U.S. and active duty members of the U.S. Armed Forces and Merchant Marine and their family members.

Registering and Requesting an Absentee Ballot:

Military and overseas citizen voters may use the standard procedures discussed above for voter registration and for absentee voting by mail.

Military and overseas voters may also use the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) to register to vote, to request absentee ballots, or to register to vote and request absentee ballots simultaneously. FPCA registration and requests for absentee ballots can be done via email, fax, or mail. 

For more information visit the Federal Voting Assistance Program’s (FVAP) Mississippi-specific FPCA page or the Mississippi Secretary of State’s UOCAVA page. 

Receiving an Absentee Ballot:

UOCAVA voters may receive their absentee ballots by email, fax, or mail by specifying their preference using the appropriate check box on the FPCA. Mississippi must send UOCAVA voters their absentee ballots at least 45 days prior to the election.

Absentee ballots may be cast by mail, fax, or email. To email or fax your election materials, use the Electronic Transmission cover sheet and email or fax the cover sheet and ballot to your county’s Circuit Clerk UOCAVA contact.  The deadline for receipt of absentee ballots by the Circuit Clerk is 7:00 p.m. on the day of the election if returning the ballot by e-mail or fax, and five (5) business days from the date of the election if returning by mail and the mailed ballot is postmarked on or before Election Day.

Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot:

The Federal Write-in Absentee Ballot (FWAB) is a back-up ballot that can be used by UOCAVA voters. Military personnel and overseas voters who request an absentee ballot, but do not receive the absentee ballot in time for the ballot to be returned in time to be counted, may use the Federal Write-in Absentee Ballot (FWAB). A FWAB must be received by the voter’s local voting officials in Mississippi no later than 7:00 p.m. on Election Day.  For specific instructions, visit the FVAP’s Mississippi-specific FWAB page.

An individual cannot vote if they have been convicted in a Mississippi state (but not federal or other state) court for a disenfranchising crime. The disenfranchising crimes include voter fraud, arson, armed robbery, bigamy, bribery, carjacking, embezzlement, extortion, felony bad check, felony shoplifting, forgery, larceny, murder, obtaining money or goods under false pretense, perjury, rape, receiving stolen property, robbery, statutory rape, theft, timber larceny, larceny under lease or rental agreement, and unlawful taking of motor vehicle.

If an individual has been convicted by a Mississippi court of a crime other than one of the specific crimes listed above, they can vote in Mississippi. An individual incarcerated outside of their county of residence may be able to apply to vote absentee by mail, provided their application can be sworn to and subscribed before an official who is authorized to administer oaths or other official authorized to witness absentee balloting. 

In Mississippi no person shall be deemed to be a resident of a county solely because of being incarcerated in a facility under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections that is located in such a county, making individuals incarcerated in their county of residence ineligible to vote absentee by mail.. 

Even if you have been convicted of a similar offense in another state or a federal felony, you still may vote.

Check the resources at Campaign Legal Restore Your Vote for the latest information.