Ward 1 commissioner Bo Plunk is contesting the election of candidate Ray Sykes in the Tuesday, April 22 Democratic Primary Runoff Election.
Plunk, a 16-year incumbent Clarksdale City Commissioner, was defeated by Sykes, 413-411 according to the final count as canvased by the Clarksdale Municipal Democratic Executive Committee. As of today, Sykes is the apparent winner of the Ward 1 race as he faces no Republican or Independent challenger in the June 3 General Election.
Plunk’s petition was formally served on Democratic Executive Committee members this week.
A petition is not a lawsuit, but it can be a precursor to one. In Mississippi, party primaries are conducted by their respective party – Democrat or Republican – who are charged with running primary elections that send a candidate to the General Election.
Sykes will be seated on the Clarksdale Board of Mayor and Commissioners on July 1, unless the Executive Committee agrees with Plunk’s petition and calls for a new election.
Plunk’s petition, filed by his attorney Samuel Begley, of Jackson, pointed out seven discrepancies ranging from what it he deemed illegally accepted affidavit ballots and persons it alleges unlawfully voted in the Ward 1 Election but are not Ward 1 residents to absentee/affidavit ballots from Flower Manor and mentally incompetent voters who voted, but are also not residents of Ward 1.
Plunk’s petition contends Ward 1 poll-workers allowed 22 people who did not live in Ward 1 to vote in the April 22 primary, that seven voters named from Flower’s Manor did not receive absentee ballots and six voters institutionalized at Delta Manor somehow cast ballots at the Ward 1 precinct on election day.
Plunk contends these discrepancies could have made him the winner in the April 22 runoff.
Plunk’s petition only presents the findings of a review of the ballot boxes by Plunk and his attorney last week.
The petition asks the Democratic Executive Committee to investigate these concerns.
The petition claims removing accepted affidavit ballots from the vote in the runoff would have seen Plunk receive 406 votes and Sykes 400 votes and Plunk be the Democratic Party nominee in the General Election.
The petition asks the Executive Committee, after examining these alleged facts, to declare Plunk the winner or to call a new election.
“In the event the Executive Committee does not declare Plunk the winner of the election based on removal of the accepted affidavit ballots from the tabulation, the Petitioner requests that the Executive Committee determine that a significant number of paper ballots were cast by persons not residing in Ward One and that such ballots were commingled with the other legally cast paper ballots, thereby necessitating a new election,” the petition states.
The Clarksdale Municipal Election Executive Committee is made up of: Chairman Gregory Neely, Tre’Shawn D. Malone, Donna A. McDougal, Marvin Pittman and Birley C. Gipson.
The Executive Committee must call a hearing where both Sykes and Plunk and their lawyers will each be given the opportunity to present evidence in support of their position. The Executive Committee can also choose not to rule on the petition, which is to be interpreted as a denial.
Any appeal by either party would go to the Chief Justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court who typically assigns a Circuit Court Judge, from a district outside of the local Circuit Court district, to hear the case.
These types of cases are not new to Coahoma County.
A little over 10 years ago, challenger Charles Jones filed suit against Sheriff Andrew Thomas after Jones lost the election and in that case Jones was ultimately named Sheriff.
About six years ago challenger Mario Magsby filed suit against Sheriff Charles Jones, after Magsby lost the election, but did not convince the court and Jones was named Sheriff.
Candidate Scotty Meredith filed suit against the Democratic Executive Committee several years ago after the Executive Committee said Meredith did not live in the city limits and could not have his name placed on the ballot. The judge upheld the Executive Committee’s decision and it, too went to the Supreme Court.
Plunk’s petition also goes on to quote state law saying, “A vote cast in an election other than where the voter resides is an illegal vote and likewise is a crime. Any person who shall vote at any election.... who shall vote out of the district of his legal domicile.... shall, upon conviction, be imprisoned in the county jail not more than one year, or be fined not more than $1,000, or both.”
Candidates for municipal office must complete and file with the State Ethics Commission a Statement of Economic Interest within fifteen days of becoming a candidate for public office.
The law also disqualifies a candidate who has not filed campaign finance reports from the ballot.
Candidates for city office must also clear up any outstanding fines, taxes or warrants from the municipalities they represent.
All candidates must be qualified voters of the city or ward they represent and must not have been convicted of certain felonies that resulted in incarceration, unless they have received a full pardon from the State of Mississippi. Candidates who have been pardoned must present that proof to their respective party and the City Clerk to qualify. Convicted felons wishing to receive a pardon must wait seven years before having their voting rights restored.
Candidates must also have lived in the city or ward they represent for the past two years and be able to prove that fact through voter registration rolls, Mississippi driver’s license or homestead exemption. Fraudulent filing of homestead exemption is a federal tax offense.
Candidates cannot have been legally declared mentally incompetent.
The Clarksdale Mayor has a current salary of $122,421.92 per year and Commissioners are paid $46,650 per year. Both Mayor and Commissioners get a monthly mileage and travel expense plus a home office expense, despite having office space at City Hall.
The annual compensation for Mayor went from $86,421 to $122,421.92 and Commissioner went from $26,650 to $46,650 on the city first meeting following their election in June 2021.
State law allows retirement to be based on the top four years of pay in the Mississippi Public Employee Retirement System (PERS) that is not able to sustain itself. City, county, school and all state employees qualify for PERS and must be at state employee to be fully vested.
Current Clarksdale City Commissioners may vote to reduce their salaries as they leave office.
