Mississippi Advisory Opinions October 18, 1983: 19831018 (October 18, 1983)

Advisory Opinion Text

Honorable Henry L. Clarke

Holmes County Election Commission

Route 1

Box 173

Pickens, Mississippi 39146

Re: Elections - Commissioners

Dear Mr. Clarke:

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

Your letter states:

“The Election Commissioners of Homes County are requesting a ruling on the following concerns:

“1. Should the ballot box be removed from the Courthouse and carried to the Manager's house for overnight stay?

“If there is a candidate on the ballot, is it legal for relatives to work? (Aunt and brother). The incumbent Supervisor wants the Aunt and brother of his opponent to work at the polls during the November 8th (General) election.”

Mississippi Code Annotated § 23-5-111 (1972) provides:

“The commissioners of election in each county shall procure, if not already provided, a sufficient number of ballot boxes, which shall be distributed by them to the election districts of the county before the time of opening the polls . The boxes shall be secured by good and substantial locks, and, if an adjournment shall take place after the opening of the polls and before all the votes shall be counted, the box shall be securely locked, so as to prevent “the admission of anything into it, or the taking of anything from it, during the time of adjournment; and the box shall be kept by one of the managers and the key by another of the managers, and the manager having the box shall carefully keep it, and neither unlock or open it himself nor permit it to be done, nor permit any person to have any access to it during the time of adjournment. The box shall not be removed from the polling building or place after the polls are opened until the count is complete, if as many as three qualified electors object. After each election the ballot boxes shall be delivered, with the keys thereof, to the clerk of the circuit court of the county for preservation; and he shall keep them for future use, and, when called for, deliver them to the commissioners of election.” (Emphasis added)

In response to your first question, it is the opinion of this office that the above statute authorizes, but does not require, the commissioners of election to distribute the ballot boxes to the election districts on the day preceding the election to be kept overnight by the receiving manager of each district.

We point out that Section 23-5-183 which authorizes payment to the manager or other person who shall carry to the place of voting the official ballots, ballot boxes, pollbooks, and other necessities at the rate of $7.50 per precinct, applies only to those places of voting away from the courthouse.

In response to your second question, we know of no prohibition against relatives of a candidate working at the polls.

Very truly yours,

Bill Allain, Attorney General.