MS 2022-11-K-Nailor-November-23-2022-Polling-Place-Outside-City-Limits November 23, 2022

Can a Mississippi city locate a polling place outside its city limits to align with the county?

Short answer: No. Miss. Code Ann. § 23-15-557 lets a municipality choose how many precincts and where polling places are, but every polling place must be within the city limits. Aligning with county precincts is allowed; locating outside the city is not.

Disclaimer: This is an official Mississippi Attorney General opinion. AG opinions are persuasive authority but not binding precedent. This summary is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Consult a licensed Mississippi attorney for advice on your specific situation.

Plain-English summary

Vicksburg had eleven precincts. One of its polling places stopped working, and the city wanted to use a replacement located just outside the city limits, partly to align Vicksburg's voting infrastructure with Warren County's. The city attorney asked whether that was lawful.

The AG: no. Municipal polling places must be within the municipal limits.

§ 23-15-557 lets municipalities divide themselves into voting precincts "of such size and location as is necessary." It also gives the election authority discretion to "locate and establish such polling places, without regard to precinct lines, in such manner as in the discretion of such authority will better accommodate the electorate and better facilitate the holding of the election." That language is permissive about precinct lines but does not extend to the city limits themselves. The 2015 Thomas opinion confirmed that Vicksburg's special charter is silent on the number of polling places, so § 23-15-557 controls. The 2016 St. Pé opinion held that a municipality could even create one precinct for the entire municipality, with one polling place. The 2022 Nailor opinion completes the picture: those polling places must be inside the city.

The opinion is concise and offers no statutory workaround for outside-city locations. The city has options to consolidate, reduce, or relocate polling places, but each option must stay within municipal limits.

What this means for you

If you serve as a city attorney or clerk for a Mississippi municipality

When a polling place becomes unavailable, your replacement must be inside city limits. Identify multiple in-city alternatives: city hall, libraries, schools, community centers, churches that are inside the city. § 23-15-557 lets you reduce the number of precincts (even down to one for the whole city) if a single polling place fits the city's electorate better. What you cannot do is locate at a county facility just over the line.

If you serve on a city council deliberating polling-place changes

Your discretion under § 23-15-557 is broad on number, location, and consolidation, narrow on geography. Adopt the change by resolution on the minutes. Coordinate with the circuit clerk on voter notification.

If you serve as a circuit clerk or county election commissioner

Aligning municipal and county precinct lines is permissible under § 23-15-557, which expressly allows precinct flexibility. But polling-place geography is constrained. If the county has a polling place near the city line that would be convenient for city voters, the city still cannot use it.

If you are a voter wondering why your polling place changed

The change has to keep you within city limits. If the new polling place is in another building inside the city, that is normal under § 23-15-557. If it appears to be outside the city limits, ask the city clerk for the address verification. Mississippi law forbids the latter.

Common questions

Q: Can a city share a polling place with the county?
A: A shared facility is fine if the facility is inside the city limits. Many municipal precincts coincide geographically with county precincts and use the same building.

Q: Can the city establish only one polling place for all voters?
A: Yes. § 23-15-557 expressly contemplates that, and the 2016 St. Pé opinion blessed it. A single citywide polling place inside the city limits is lawful.

Q: Why does Mississippi require in-city polling?
A: § 23-15-557 implies the requirement by limiting the municipality's authority to its own boundaries. A municipality cannot regulate facilities outside its corporate limits, and statutory authority to locate polling places does not extend beyond. Constitutional and federal voting-rights considerations also disfavor outside-the-jurisdiction polling.

Q: What about absentee voting?
A: Absentee voting is governed by Miss. Code Ann. §§ 23-15-621 et seq., and procedures are different. The Nailor opinion addresses regular polling places, not absentee processing.

Q: Can Vicksburg's special charter override § 23-15-557?
A: A special charter could override general law if it spoke to polling-place geography. The 2015 Thomas opinion concluded Vicksburg's charter is silent on the number of polling places, so general law (§ 23-15-557) governs. Without a charter provision authorizing extraterritorial polls, Vicksburg cannot adopt them.

Q: Can the city annex the desired polling-place property?
A: Annexation is a separate process under Mississippi annexation law and would resolve the geographic problem if accomplished. It is not a quick fix.

Background and statutory framework

Mississippi's municipal election framework rests on § 23-15-557 and the broader chapter governing election administration. Section 557 gives municipalities flexibility on precincts and polling places, expressly disconnecting polling locations from precinct boundary lines. Both Mississippi general law and Vicksburg's special charter together leave the question of polling-place geography to general law.

The AG opinions on the topic build a clean line: municipalities can have many precincts or one (St. Pé 2016), can have polling places that do not match precinct lines (general law), can use the city's own facilities or rented facilities, but cannot cross the city limit (Nailor 2022).

Citations

Miss. Code Ann. § 23-15-557 (municipal precincts and polling places)
MS AG Op., Thomas (Aug. 21, 2015) (Vicksburg special charter silent on polling-place number)
MS AG Op., St. Pé (Apr. 22, 2016) (a single municipal polling place is permissible)

Source

Original opinion text

November 23, 2022
Kimberly Nailor, Esq.
Attorney, City of Vicksburg
Post Office Box 150
Vicksburg, Mississippi 39181
Re:

Polling Place Outside City Limits

Dear Ms. Nailor:
The Office of the Attorney General has received your request for an official opinion.

Background
According to your request, the City of Vicksburg ("City") currently has eleven precincts, one of
which has a polling place that can no longer be used. You state that the City wishes to align its
voting precincts and polling places to coincide with Warren County. A replacement polling place
for the one that can no longer be used has been suggested; however, it is outside the City limits.
Question Presented
Does the City have the authority to establish a polling place for City voters outside of the City
limits?

Brief Response
No. While a municipality has the discretion to locate polling places without regard to precinct
lines, all municipal polling places must be within the municipal limits.
Applicable Law and Discussion
Section 23-15-557 of the Mississippi Code provides:
The governing authorities of any municipality within the State of Mississippi are
hereby authorized and empowered, in their discretion, to divide the municipality
into a sufficient number of voting precincts of such size and location as is necessary,

and there shall be the same number of polling places. The authority conducting an
election shall not be required, however, to establish a polling place in each of said
precincts, but such election authorities, whether in a primary or in a general
election, may locate and establish such polling places, without regard to precinct
lines, in such manner as in the discretion of such authority will better accommodate
the electorate and better facilitate the holding of the election.
We understand that the City of Vicksburg is governed by a special charter, which gives the
governing authority discretion in establishing the number of voting precincts in the City. MS AG
Op., Thomas at 1 (Aug. 21, 2015). We have previously opined that because Vicksburg's special
charter is silent on the number of polling places, the general law, Section 23-15-557, requiring the
City to establish polling places equal to the number of precincts applies. Id.
We have also opined that Section 23-15-557 authorizes a municipality to create one precinct for
an entire municipality, in which case there would be only one polling place for all qualified electors
to cast their ballots. MS AG Op., St. Pé at 1 (Apr. 22, 2016). Similarly, because the City of
Vicksburg has the authority to establish as many precincts in each ward as necessary for the
convenience of the electors, the City has the discretion to reduce its number of precincts. However,
there is no statutory authority to establish a municipal polling place outside the municipal limits.
All municipal polling places must be within the City limits.
If this office may be of any further assistance to you, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Sincerely,
LYNN FITCH, ATTORNEY GENERAL
By:

/s/ Beebe Garrard
Beebe Garrard
Special Assistant Attorney General