Mississippi Advisory Opinions September 10, 1986: 19860910 (September 10, 1986)

Advisory Opinion Text

Honorable W. Allen Pepper, Jr.

Attorney for the Town of Merigold

Post Office Box 187

Cleveland, Mississippi 38732

Dear Mr. Pepper:

Attorney General Edwin Lloyd Pittman has received your letter of request and assigned it to me for research and reply.

Your letter states:

“As attorney for the Town of Merigold, Mississippi, the Board of Aldermen and I are very concerned about the prospects of litigation being filed against us challenging the at-large election of aldermen in city elections for our town.

“We are willing to take whatever steps necessary to comply with federal and state dictates concerning municipal elections and would appreciate your guidance and suggestions as soon as possible so as to avoid being a target in an election suit.

“The present population of Merigold is 552 and a question arose concerning whether we might be exempt from the ward requirement by virtue of the small population. We would appreciate your addressing this question as well as the general guidelines that we might adhere to.”

In response to your inquiry please see the enclosed copy of an opinion addressed to Honorable R. K. Houston, dated May 29, 1984.

In summary that opinion states that the U.S. District Court in Stewart v. Waller , 404 F.Supp. 206 (N.D. Miss. 1975), invalidated Mississippi Code Annotated § 21-3-7 (1972) and specifically held that “the pre-1962 statutory law governing aldermanic elections remains in effect as if § 21-3-7 had never been enacted.”

That opinion further states that the pre-1962 statutory law governing aldermanic elections is Mississippi Code Annotated § 3374-36 (1942) which gives the governing authorities of municipalities having a population of less than ten thousand (10, 000) the discretionary authority to divide the municipality into four wards with one alderman to be elected from each ward and one from the municipality at large.

This office is not aware of any mandatory requirement that Mississippi Municipalities with a population of less than ten thousand (10, 000) divide into wards.

This, of course, does not make the Town of Merigold immune to a lawsuit seeking to have the town divided into wards for election purposes.

Very truly yours,

Edwin Lloyd Pittman, Attorney General.