Over 56,000 absentee ballots cast so far in Mississippi midterm election

By Taylor Vance | Originally published by Mississippi Today

Mississippi voters have returned more than twice as many absentee ballots as they had done at this point in the 2022 midterms.

But there was no Senate race on the ballot in 2022, and the numbers remain below the last presidential race.

As of Monday, circuit clerks’ offices had received 56,049 absentee ballots, according to the Secretary of State’s office. At roughly the same point in 2022, they had received 22,221.

The jump comes in a year when a U.S. Senate seat is on the ballot, with Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith facing Democrat Scott Colom and independent Ty Pinkins.

VOTER GUIDE: Mississippi 2026 midterm elections guide: Who’s running? What are the issues?

The absentee ballot count this year is still far below the 2024 federal election cycle, but voter turnout usually increases in presidential election years.  At this point in 2024, 119,818 absentee ballots had been received, so this year’s count is a little under half of that.

DeSoto County currently has the most returned absentee ballots at 4,588, followed by Hinds County at 4,240 and Harrison County at 4,183.

Voters with a qualifying excuse can vote absentee in person at their circuit clerk’s office until noon Saturday, Oct. 31. Mail-in absentee ballots must be postmarked by Election Day, Nov. 3, and received within five business days, by Nov. 10.

Mississippi does not offer no-excuse early voting. Voters must have a legal excuse to vote absentee, such as being 65 or older, having a disability, working during polling hours or being away from their home county on Election Day. Eligibility is narrower for mail-in ballots than for in-person absentee voting.

For more information on how to vote absentee in person or by mail, go to this secretary of state’s web page.

This article was originally published by Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Source: Original Article