The ballot is set for the November General Election with Coahoma County voters to choose county school board trustees, election commissioners and their U.S. Representative.
Coahoma County School Board candidates are:
• Coreen J. Richardson, of Coahoma, for Second District Trustee.
• Gerald Jermaine Johnson, of Jonestown, for First District Trustee.
• Emanuel Lackey, of Jonestown, for First District Trustee.
Coahoma County Election Commissioner candidates are:
• Eva Cole Lee, of Clarksdale, for District 4 Election Commissioner.
• Billy R. Martin, of Jonestown, for District 3 Election Commissioner.
Startavian Victory, of Jonestown, for District 3 Election Commissioner.
Incumbent Second District Representative Bennie Thompson will be the Democratic candidate for Congress. Brian Flowers, a Navy veteran from Clinton, will be on the ballot as a Republican.
Friday was the deadline to qualify for a spot on the Coahoma County School Board and as a Coahoma County Election Commissioner.
The County School Board will see the post of School Board Districts 1, currently held by Rodrick Monroe, and School Board District 2, currently held by Lester Myles, voted on this fall.
The post of Election Commissioner District 4, currently held by Eva Cole-Lee is up for election. Roosevelt Noah resigned and Cole-Lee was appointed to this position.
Also on the ballot will be the filling of Election Commission District 3, held by Mary Smith, who passed away last month.
Election Commissioners are paid $100 each time they meet, which is traditionally twice a month and more often around elections.
By law, School Trustees can receive no more than $200 per month, but most districts do cover travel expenses to required meetings and some conferences. This varies by district as determined in local policy.
A school board member must be a resident and qualified elector (registered voter) of the district from which election is sought and have a high school diploma or its equivalent.
By state law school board members are charged with setting the budget, establishing district policy, approving bills and expenditures, hire or fire the superintendent.
School board members also cannot vote on the pay at any time or for any reason of a family member employed by the district and must recuse themselves from voting any time the issue arises.
No one who is a resident of a municipal school district is eligible to be a member of the county board of education.
Each school board member shall be required to complete a basic course of training and education for local school board members conducted by the Mississippi School Boards Association within six months of his selection. In addition, each school board member shall be required to file annually in the office of the school board a certificate of completion of a course of continuing education conducted by the Mississippi School Boards Association.
By state law school boards are not allowed to implement policy, evaluate staff, teachers or any school employee except the superintendent or direct activities of any employee except the superintendent. The superintendent is charged with managing the daily activities of all district employees.
According to the Mississippi Constitution Section 109, the spouse of a board member may not be employed in the district. School board members also cannot vote on the pay at any time or for any reason of a family member employed by the district and must recuse themselves from voting any time the issue arises.
Election Commissioners must be a qualified elector of the county and a resident in the district in which he or she seeks election for at least two years prior to the general election.
Election Commissioners must be non-partisan.
A recent ruling in Meeks v. Tallahatchie County, the court said "Perhaps more so than is the case with other public officials, the integrity of the office of the Election Commissioner must be totally beyond compromise. The legislature has enacted that Election Commissioners shall totally remove themselves from any taint or hint or suspicion of partisanship. 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. 513 So.2d 563 (Miss. 1987)”
Candidates for county election commissioner shall qualify by filing with the Chancery Clerk of his or her county a petition personally signed by not less than fifty (50) qualified electors of the supervisor’s district in which the candidate resides.
Election Commissioners are charged with about 20 specific duties, from hiring poll workers and certifying election results to purging voter rolls and sitting with judges in contested races and ballots.
Questions about voting locations and where a person should vote should be directed to Circuit Clerk Demetria Jackson at 662-624-3014.
Questions or concerns about voting issues, policy and procedure for any election should be directed to the Secretary of State’s office at (601) 359-1350.
Questions or concerns about candidate qualifications, ethics and conduct while in office should be directed to the Attorney General’s Public Integrity Division at (601) 359-4258.
Qualifications vary from office to office but the main requirements are to be a resident and qualified voter from the ward, district or county they plan to represent. Candidates may not have been convicted of a federal crime or certain Mississippi crimes defined as felonies punishable by incarceration in a state penitentiary, unless they have received a full pardon. They also may not be convicted of a crime in another state that is considered a felony under Mississippi law.
Candidates cannot have been legally declared mentally incompetent.
Candidates must fill out a statement of economic interest online within 15 days of qualifying with the Secretary of State and routinely throughout the year. Candidates must report any contribution over $200. Failure to file these reports can result in fines and possible removal from office.
