Issues
Bringing Accountability to Mississippi Elections
January 05, 2010
Realizing the importance of an open and fair election process, Secretary Hosemann drafted and supported legislation to bring more credibility to Mississippi elections. He has worked tirelessly to:
- Promote and adopt a strict voter identification requirement. Voter identification is a common sense approach to providing confidence in the election system. Mississippi cannot move forward looking over its shoulder. It is time to put this issue behind us and adopt a strict voter identification requirement in our State.
- Reform absentee and affidavit balloting. Absentee and affidavit ballot are the most common ways unscrupulous citizens steal your vote. Only through tough reforms and more stringent penalties can we curb this practice.
- Reform assistance voting. Anytime there are “four legs under the curtain,” there is an opportunity for mischief at the polls. Only those who are blind, disabled, or unable to read or write qualify for assistance in voting. Secretary Hosemann is a proponent of imposing stricter guidelines on who can assist a voter and who can receive assistance.
- Purge bloated voter rolls. There were 29 counties in our State with more people registered to vote than are actually living and breathing in that county. By following State and Federal guidelines and purging the voter rolls, we drastically reduce the opportunity for someone to steal your vote, while, at the same time, save counties thousands of much-needed dollars.
Also, under Secretary Hosemann’s leadership, for the first time ever, the Office of the Secretary of State canvasses counties across the State during elections and reports their findings to the Legislature, the Governor, and public. Those findings are compiled into a report, posted on the Secretary of State’s website. We need to ensure the integrity of our election system, and Secretary Hosemann is steadily working toward that goal.
