Sec. of State wants high voter turnout; party leaders expect competitive race in Tuesday’s primary

Mississippi Republican Party Chairman Mike Hurst is optimistic.

“I think Mississippians are engaged,” he said. “Even though we sometimes see lower voter turnout during non-presidential election years, I think people are watching this round of elections because we have a number of candidates running for both Senate and for Congress. I think you're going to see a higher turnout than normal.”

Watson said as of Monday, only 9,000 absentee ballots had been received by his agency. He called the figure “abysmal.” In-person absentee voting ends tomorrow Saturday, March 7. All mail-in ballots must be postmarked by Tuesday, March 10.

Watson hopes voters use the Secretary of State’s digital tools to educate themselves on the electoral process.

“Our ‘TextMyGov’ is a new platform we started about a year ago. It's fantastic. You can text our office and you get responses back. The key thing there is that people can understand, they can actually ask us questions and we'll give you the feedback,” he said. 

Watson also encouraged the use of ‘My Election Day,’ which allows a voter to enter their residential address to understand where their voting poll is and other key information.

“Who are your elected officials? Here's a ballot that you can go take a look at, who's going to be on the ballot here in this coming election,” said Watson. “Numbers for your circuit clerk, commissioners.”

Watson acknowledged that his office was working to enhance voter confidence in Mississippi’s electoral process. 

“Having people on the ground is the most important part when it comes to the integrity of the process. Folks that are taking the time to pay attention to what's going on around them,” he said. “So when they have those tools that they need to report back to us, I think it's really important.”

Watson said all 82 counties are now required to have to paper ballots. 

“There will always be a paper verifiable trail. I think that's really important for folks to have confidence in the process,” he said. “We talk a lot about voter roll maintenance. If you ask me, that is the absolute bedrock and the key piece of the integrity of the process. So we've done a lot of hard work with that.”

THE ISSUES

Although a slight majority of Republicans nationwide continue to support President Trump’s initiatives, suspense has been building about whether Democrats are capable of gaining an edge in Mississippi. 

“We have Cindy Hyde-Smith who has polled lower than any other public candidate, and we know that she's a prime target in the up-and-coming election,” said State Representative and State Democratic Party Chairman, Cheikh Taylor. “Even though we're still outside of the primary and I cannot speak on who’s favored to win as far as on a Democratic stance, I can say that we have great candidates in all four elections.”

Taylor believes “bread and butter” issues like the economy are going to drive voters to the polls. He said “Democrats bring money back to the state,” even as Republicans support policies that he believes are harmful

“We're here strapped for cash because of bad [state] House and Senate bills. HB1 [the ‘Build Up Mississippi Act], being one of them, which got away with a personal income tax and which gave away a third of our budget. Almost $2 billion off the top.”

“Whether it's Medicaid expansion, the closing of hospitals, public education, which we've seen under attack, and a plethora of other things. We know for folks at home, whether you're voting for Democrats or not, you're for the interests. The interests that Democrats hold very high. So you know that voting for Democrats in this particular election is going to help the bottom line for the state of Mississippi,” he said. 

However, Republican Party Chairman Hurst said kitchen table issues won’t be enough to put candidates in place who will swing the state purple.

“It's the same thing we see almost every year. National Democrats come to Mississippi because they can buy a lot more air time, maybe send out a lot of mailers, and they just try to flood our state and buy votes,” he said.

“Right now, what we're seeing throughout our state is Mississippi is still red. We're still conservative. The majority of the people in this state have the same values and the same principles, and those are conservative principles. So, yeah, when I see Democrats winning elections, usually it's because a court or a judge has redrawn the line,” Hurst said.

Hurst said the strength of policies coming out of Washington are going to give voters the confidence to pick strong GOP candidates. 

“I think our voters are going to see the message of the candidates,” he said. “I think they're going to pick those who have the experience, they have the wisdom and they have the most conservative values. I think that's who's going to be elected.”

SENATE CANDIDATES

Democratic:

Sixteenth Circuit Court District Attorney Scott Colom says he’s running to “lower costs for families,” save Mississippi hospitals and create more jobs in the state. He’s a native of Columbus and says he’s prioritized crime prevention through accountability.

Chicago native Albert R. Littell previously served in the U.S. Marine Corps. He then worked with the Chicago Transit Authority before moving to Mississippi. His platform includes the creation of a “living wage for all,” affordable healthcare and better resources for public schools. 

Advocate Priscilla W. Till is a former educator who is campaigning for clean water and strong infrastructure. She’s supportive of expanding Medicaid, investing in the state’s public education system and supporting accountability for waste and neglect.

Republican:

Incumbent Junior Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith is the first woman elected to represent Mississippi in Congress. Her platform has advocated for providing better resources for farmers and economic growth in the state. She refers to herself as a “social conservative” and opposes efforts to expand mail-order abortions.

Ocean Springs resident Dr. Sarah Adlakha is a conservative running on an anti-corruption platform who supports decreasing the national debt and strengthening the nation’s borders. She’s a mother and a co-owner of a cardiology business who’s “stepping up to fight for Mississippi values and bring real-world experience to Washington.”