JACKSON — The Mississippi Legislature might be appropriating more COVID-19 related federal funds to help counties deal with pandemic-related costs for the Nov. 3 election.
The House and Senate Election committees held a joint hearing Wednesday and heard from Secretary of State Michael Watson and George County Circuit Clerk Chad Welford.
Both talked about how curbside voting would work in the state’s 82 counties and how the Legislature needs to pass legislation that would allow those voting absentee an additional excuse to allow voting in person at a courthouse during a state of emergency since there will be likely be more absentee votes cast on Election Day than in past years.
“I think we’re going to be faced with challenges and we’re going to have to deal with this here on out,” Welford said to the committee.
House Bill 297, which was sponsored by state Rep. Becky Currie, R-Brookhaven, would allow absentee votes to be cast electronically in the registrar’s office or by mail. Welford said most of the circuit clerks support this legislation.
Welford told the committee that upgrading to touch screen systems like the Election Systems and Software DS200 machines would cost his county about $200,000. He said these machines are ideal for use in a pandemic since the voter fills out a ballot with a pen at a station and the ballot is fed into the machine without them having to touch the screen.
When asked about how to prevent absentee voters from casting a second ballot on Election Day, Welford said that his office prints the poll books (which contain the names of all registered voters in the county) and those voters who cast ballots absentee are pre-marked on the printout.
