Mississippi Republican runoffs: Voting brisk, steady despite some confusion over districts

Voter turnout in Tuesday's Republican runoff elections was slow in some areas and brisk in others, according to a few poll workers around the state.

More than 200 people had voted at Pilgrim’s Rest Baptist Church in Madison by 11:30 a.m. Tuesday. One poll worker there said the precinct had only 319 total votes in the June 7 Republican primary.

On the ballot Tuesday were District 3 incumbent Michael Guest and Republican challenger Michael Cassidy.

Only one Democrat qualified for the District 3 office. Democrat Shuwaski Young will appear on the November ballot with the winner of the District 3 Republican runoff.

In the Hattiesburg area, voting moved at a slower pace for the District 4 race, but voters kept trickling in.

"It's steady but slow," said poll worker Jack Van Devender, who was working at the Oak Grove Community Center.

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As of about 1:30 p.m., 185 of the precinct's 2,114 registered voters had cast their ballots for either incumbent Steven Palazzo or Jackson County Sheriff Mike Ezell.

The winner of the District 4 runoff will face Democrat Johnny DuPree and Libertarian Alden Johnson in the general election.

Elsewhere in Mississippi, some voters were confused over which congressional district they are in since the state adopted new district plans to reflect the shift in population from the 2020 Census.

Dan Roach of Jackson said he has “always” lived in District 3, but he now finds himself in District 2. His polling place at St. Phillips Episcopal Church was split between the districts.

When he voted in the general election, he voted in District 3, but when he returned to vote in the runoff he was told he was in District 2 and could not vote for either of the District 3 candidates. Roach said he ended up not voting.

“I feel a little bit confused because I voted in the District 3 primary and now I can’t vote in the … runoff, or at least I shouldn’t,” Roach said. “District 2, I don’t really know either of the candidates.”

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The District 2 Republican runoff is between candidates Brian Flowers and Ron Eller. The winner will face incumbent Democrat Bennie Thompson in November.

Kendra James, assistant secretary of state for communications, said Secretary of State Michael Watson's office would look into what had happened.

"Call volume to the Secretary of State's Elections Hotline is steady, with most calls relating to polling place locations and ballot confusion at the St. Philip's Episcopal Church voting precinct in Congressional District 2," James said Tuesday in a news release.

"We received about 10 reports of voters claiming they were able to cast a District 3 ballot in the primary election but received a District 2 ballot from poll workers at the same precinct during today's runoff elections."

The primary and runoff elections are conducted by political parties and local election officials, James said. "However, all reports have been passed along to the proper authorities, including the Attorney General’s Office."

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In Crystal Springs, which is also in District 2, voting looked like a repeat of the June 7 primary at the J.T. Biggs Jr. Memorial Library.

By noon, five Republican votes were cast in both.

Mary Dell McCoy of Crystal Springs came in to cast her ballot during lunch for a number of reasons.

“I just think as an American citizen we need to set an example for the younger generation because we all need to work together,” McCoy said. “By voting and expressing our collective opinion, American officials will know what we want.”

She also said it’s time for leadership in Washington to take a new direction.

“Things are out of control and we need to get back to a more reasonable world where we respect our differences,” McCoy said. “I just think some of our elected officials in Washington are out of touch with rural America.”

Poll manager Linda Murray said the Republican turnout was normal and only expected a small percentage of the 2,192 registered voters to cast their ballots at the precinct.

“We might get a few more,” Murray said. “Last time we had 31. We might get to 31 after folks get off from work.”

District 1 incumbent Republican Trent Kelly won the primary and will be on the November ballot with Democratic challenger Dianne Black.

Clarion Ledger reporters Brian Broom and Wicker Perlis, communities editor Scott Hawkins and photographer Barbara Gauntt contributed to this story.

Do you have a story to share? Contact Lici Beveridge at lbeveridge@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @licibev or Facebook at facebook.com/licibeveridge.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi elections June 28, 2022: Republican runoffs voter turnout