In Mississippi, can someone running for county election commissioner show a political party label on the ballot, and can a sitting commissioner stay in their party?

Subject

Election Commissioners and Political Party Affiliation

Recipient

Beverly Ragan, Chairman, Tishomingo County Election Commission

Plain-English summary

Tishomingo County's election commission chairman asked whether members and candidates for election commissioner can be associated with a political party. The AG drew a careful line. Section 23-15-213(3) requires every candidate for the office to declare in writing their party affiliation, "if any," and that affiliation appears on the ballot. So a candidate can absolutely belong to a party and run as such.

But once in office, the calculus changes. Citing the Mississippi Supreme Court's 1987 Meeks decision, the AG repeated that an election commissioner's neutrality must be "totally beyond compromise or even perception of the possibility of compromise." Commissioners must "totally remove themselves from any taint or hint or suspicion of partnership," staying as aloof from partisan politics "as much as judges, if not more so." The practical translation is that an election commissioner cannot participate in any election campaign other than their own. They can stay in a party. They cannot work it.

What this means for you

Sitting election commissioners

The opinion holds that you may be a member of a political party, but once in office you "must avoid even the appearance of impropriety and, therefore, must not participate in any election campaign other than their own." It relies on the Meeks standard that commissioners "shall totally remove themselves from any taint or hint or suspicion of partnership" and must be "aloof from partisan politics as much as judges, if not more so." The opinion does not enumerate specific prohibited acts beyond participating in other campaigns.

Candidates for election commissioner

The opinion holds that a candidate "may be a member of a political party and may run for election with their party affiliation shown on the ballot." Section 23-15-213(3) requires the written declaration of affiliation, "if any," to the board of supervisors, and that affiliation appears on the official ballot.

County boards of supervisors

Under Section 23-15-213(3) you receive candidates' written party-affiliation declarations and show the affiliation on the official ballot. The opinion places no bar on a partisan candidate; the impartiality duty it describes attaches to in-office conduct.

Common questions

Can an election commissioner vote in a primary?
The opinion does not address voting. What it bars is participating in any election campaign other than the commissioner's own.

Can a commissioner contribute money to a candidate?
The opinion does not address campaign contributions. It states the general duty from Meeks to avoid "any taint or hint or suspicion of partnership" and the specific bar on participating in other candidates' campaigns.

Does the duty apply only during election season?
The Meeks language the opinion quotes is continuous: once a person assumes the office, "he becomes obligated to stay out of any other electoral endeavor for the term of his office, period."

Can a commissioner run for re-election?
Yes. The opinion bars participating in "any election campaign other than their own," which leaves the commissioner's own campaign open.

Has Section 23-15-217 changed since Meeks?
Yes, but the Court's articulation of the impartiality standard is still good law per the AG. See also MS AG Op., Glaskox (June 21, 2019) for a more recent restatement.

Background and statutory framework

Section 23-15-213(3) provides that "[a]ll candidates [for county election commissioner] shall declare in writing their party affiliation, if any, to the board of supervisors, and such party affiliation shall be shown on the official ballot." The "if any" makes party affiliation optional but the disclosure mandatory.

Section 23-15-217 governs election commissioner conduct. Although the statute has been amended since the Mississippi Supreme Court decided Meeks in 1987, the Court's standard remains the AG's reference point: commissioners must be at least as aloof from partisan politics as judges, and must avoid any conduct that suggests partnership with a candidate or party slate. The AG has reaffirmed that standard in Glaskox (June 21, 2019), and earlier in Miller (June 17, 2010), which similarly cautioned against participation in campaigns beyond the commissioner's own.

The combined statutory and case-law framework lets commissioners carry party identity into the office (people are not erased of their political views by election) but bars them from acting on that identity in ways that would compromise the perceived neutrality of the office.

Citations

• Miss. Code Ann. § 23-15-213(3) (candidate party affiliation declaration and ballot listing)
• Miss. Code Ann. § 23-15-217 (election commissioner conduct standards)
• Meeks v. Tallahatchie Cnty., 513 So. 2d 563, 569 (Miss. 1987) (impartiality duty stronger than that of judges)
• MS AG Op., Glaskox (June 21, 2019) (reaffirming Meeks standard)
• MS AG Op., Miller (June 17, 2010) (commissioners may not participate in campaigns other than their own)

Source

• Landing page: https://attorneygenerallynnfitch.com/divisions/opinions-and-policy/recent-opinions/
• Original PDF: https://attorneygenerallynnfitch.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/B.Ragan-June-23-2023-Election-Commissioners.pdf

Original opinion text

June 23, 2023
Beverly Ragan, Chairman
Tishomingo County Election Commission
1008 Battleground Drive, Room 112
Iuka, Mississippi 38852
Re:

Election Commissioners

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

Question Presented
May an election commissioner or a candidate running for the election commission be a member
of a political party?
Brief Response
An election commissioner or a candidate running for election commissioner may be affiliated with
a political party and may run for election with their party affiliation shown on the ballot. However,
an election commissioner must refrain from showing favoritism to any candidate or group of
candidates.

Applicable Law and Discussion
With respect to candidates for county election commissioner, Section 23-15-213(3) of the
Mississippi Code provides that "[a]ll candidates shall declare in writing their party affiliation, if
any, to the board of supervisors, and such party affiliation shall be shown on the official ballot."
Citing Section 23-15-217, the Mississippi Supreme Court has said:
Perhaps more so than is the case with any other public official, the integrity of the
office of Elections Commissioner must be totally beyond compromise or even
perception of the possibility of compromise. The legislature has enacted that
elections commissioners shall totally remove themselves from any taint or hint or
suspicion of partnership. They must be aloof from partisan politics as much as
judges, if not more so. For what is at stake is public confidence in our system of
self[-]government. By law, once Eddie Meeks or anyone else assumes the office of
Elections Commissioner, he becomes obligated to stay out of any other electoral
endeavor for the term of his office, period. If this seem harsh, it is certainly less so
than the adverse impact upon the public interest if our people come to doubt the
integrity of the system.
Meeks v. Tallahatchie Cnty., 513 So. 2d 563, 569 (Miss. 1987). We note that Section 23-15-217
has been amended since the Court decided Meeks. However, the Court's statement regarding
impartiality of election commissioners is still valid. See also MS AG Op., Glaskox (June 21, 2019).
Accordingly, any candidate for election commissioner may be a member of a political party and
may run for election with their party affiliation shown on the ballot. However, an election
commissioner must avoid even the appearance of impropriety and, therefore, must not participate
in any election campaign other than their own. See MS AG Op., Miller (June 17, 2010).
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