Mississippi Resources for Voters with Disabilities

In Mississippi, you have the right to the following as protected by federal law. Election staff must be trained on and respect these rights:

• Accessible voter registration
• Accessible polling places
• Policies and procedures that do not discriminate against you based on your disability
• Accessible, available, and operational voting systems
• Your service animal to accompany you inside the polling place
• The right to vote privately and independently or with assistance, if needed
• Assistance from a person of your choice, who can be a friend, family member, or poll worker (but not your boss, union agent or someone who has authority over you at work)

In Mississippi, you also have the right to:  

• Vote without threat or intimidation or being paid to coerce your vote
• Vote by affidavit ballot even if your name does not appear on the poll book or you do not have an acceptable form of photo ID.
  • If you cast an affidavit ballot, you are entitled to receive written information at the time of voting on how to know if the vote was counted or why it was not counted.
• Have an assistant help you vote. This helper can be relative who is a parent, child, or spouse assist you in voting even if they are a candidate on the ballot or the spouse, parent or child of a candidate. There are other exclusions explained in the next section.

Federal law requires assistance in registering to vote from offices that provide public assistance or state-funded programs serving people with disabilities. Responsibilities of these offices include:

• Providing voter registration forms
• Assisting voters in completing the forms
• Transmitting completed forms to the appropriate election official

All aspects of voter registration must be accessible.

• You may request assistance from a poll worker or receive assistance from a person of your choice with the following exceptions:  
  • your employer or an agent of your employer
  • an officer or agent of your union
  • a candidate whose name is on the ballot; or the spouse, parent, sibling or child of a candidate whose name is on the ballot
  • a poll watcher who is observing in the polling place 
     
• If a candidate or someone related to a candidate is also your parent, sibling, or child, they can assist you
• A poll worker cannot:
  • force you to accept assistance
  • attempt to persuade you to vote for or against
    • a candidate
    • a ballot question

• If you have a disability and are voting by mail, you do not have to get your ballot signed by an authorized official. Instead, you can have it signed by anyone who is at least 18 years old.             
• You can recieve assistance when marking your absentee ballot. The person who helped you must complete the Certificate of Person Providing Voter Assistance, which is on the back of the absentee ballot envelope.   
• If you need an alternative ballot, please contact your local election official.

Federal law requires polling places to meet minimum compliance standards for individuals with special needs. 

• The Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act of 1984 (VAEHA) requires accessible polling places in federal elections for elderly individuals and people with disabilities. Where no accessible location is available to serve as a polling place, voters must be provided an alternate means of voting in person on Election Day.
   
• The Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) requires at least one accessible voting system for persons with disabilities at each polling place in federal elections.  The accessible voting system must provide the same opportunity for access and participation, including privacy and independence, that other voters receive. 

If you want to check that your polling location meets these standards or find an alternative polling location, contact your local election official.

If you are not able to enter the polling place due to your disability, two poll managers can come out to your vehicle with your ballot.

• After they check that you are registered, you will be allowed to vote your ballot                                                     
• To make sure your vote is secret, everyone else will have to leave the vehicle until you are done voting               
• When you have filled out your ballot, the poll manager will place it directly into the sealed ballot box                       
• If you make a mistake when filling out your ballot, you can get up to two new ones

If you are able to enter the polling location but unable to stand in line, you can:

• Request to be moved to the front of the line or refuse to be moved to the front of the line
• Request that a chair be provided or refuse to accept a chair
• Request to have your place in line held and notified when it is your turn

You can review a sample ballot before voting. For information about the accessible voting machines available to you, please contact your local election official.

Contact Disability Rights Mississippi's voter hotline at 1-800-772-4057 if you:

• encounter inaccessible voting sites during voting hours on Election Day
• you have a question about voting rights
• experience other barriers to voting related to your disability

Contact Mississippi's Secretary of State's Hotline at 1-800-829-6786 if you:

• need information about casting a ballot
• have questions about photo ID requirements

You can fill out the Mississippi HAVA Complaint Form. The form must be notarized before being filed in one of the following ways:

• Hand delivery to The Secretary of State’s Office Elections Division
• Overnight service to:
  401 Mississippi Street
  Jackson, Mississippi
  39201
   
• By mail to:
  Post Office Box 136
  Jackson, Mississippi
  39205-0136. 

If you have any questions, please contact the Elections Division at (800) 829-6786. 

You can also fill out a Violation of Civil Rights Complaint Form and submit it to the US Department of Justice by one of the following methods:

• Online, through the form’s submission process - this is the fastest method.
• By fax at (202) 616-9881. You MUST include “ATTN: Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Complaints" at the top of your fax submission for it to be processed correctly.
• By mailing your form to: 

                 U.S. Department of Justice
                 Office of the Inspector General Investigations Division
                 ATTN: Civil Rights & Civil Liberties Complaints
                 950 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
                 Washington, DC 20530

For additional assistance, The National Network of ADA Centers can provide local contact information for other organizations you may wish to contact, including your Regional ADA Center or ADA Knowledge Translation Center, or Federal Agencies and Resources.

Mississippi Voter PDF Guide for 2022-2025

Voter Registration or Absentee Ballot Request

Election Dates/Deadlines

Election Official Directory

US Vote Foundation's Voter Help Desk

Verified Voter Accessible Voting Machine Search

Department of Justice Civil Rights Violation Complaint Form