Secretary of State Michael Watson says his office has been in contact with election officials across the state to make sure they're prepared and to avoid the ballot shortages seen in Hinds County during the gubernatorial election last year.
“I want to remind you that 81 of 82 counties did a fantastic job,” Watson said. “We have since sat down with the election commissioners, invited them to our office and kind of walked through what happened and what went wrong and how we can help them be better.”
None of the state's primaries are expected to be competitive. Incumbent Republican Senator Roger Wicker is seeking a fourth term, and is the only Congressional candidate facing a primary opponent with any name recognition. That opponent is state Representative Dan Eubanks of DeSoto County, but Wicker is the favorite in that race.
Three former Republican candidates for president: Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy and Nikki Haley will be on Mississippi's primary ballot even though they have dropped out of the race. Former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden are expected to handily win their parties primaries, along with the 40 Republican and 35 Democratic delegates that come with them.
Watson says even though each party's presidential primary is no longer competitive, people should still exercise their right to vote.
“A lot of people say, you know, ‘it's already decided, we know who the candidates are going to be in November,’ again, still very important to have your voices heard," Watson said,
Watson says that he expects low turnout on Tuesday due to only around 15,500 absentee ballots being requested. Polls will be open from 7 to 7 on Tuesday.
