- If you’re filling out your ballot at home to vote early or absentee, you must use a blue or black pen. Avoid felt-tip, and make sure you do not fill out the ballot on a wet surface. Many states will compare your signature to what is already on file, and for most Americans, this will be a drivers’ license signature. Take a look at your license while you are signing to make sure they match. When dating your signature, write out the entire date (10/19/2020, instead of 10/19/20). Also, check for your state’s recommended “send-by” date to make sure your ballot comes in on time. Finally, avoid taking photos of your ballot or selfies with your ballot; many states — including Mississippi — prohibit these photos and your ballot could be deemed invalid. Absentee voting in Mississippi is available until Oct. 31.
- The presidential election cycle has come back around since the 2016 win for Donald Trump, and this year, his biggest competitor is former Vice President Joe Biden, who served eight years with the Barack Obama administration. In addition to other candidates, rapper Kanye West will be featured on Mississippi’s ballot, which is one of only 12 states to feature the celebrity after he declared himself a candidate in September.
- In one of the most-watched races in the country, Republican incumbent Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith faces Democrat challenger Mike Espy again for Mississippi’s United States Senate seat. Espy broke single-day fundraising records in September, and Hyde-Smith was endorsed by President Donald Trump during the last election. Espy has repeatedly challenged Hyde-Smith to debates, but she has never agreed to one.
- Oxford falls into the 1st Congressional District in Mississippi, so on-campus voters and others registered in the county will choose between Antonia Eliason and Trent Kelly for the seat. Eliason is a University of Mississippi law professor who is running the first Democratic Socialist campaign in the state. Kelly, who has held the seat since 2015, currently serves on the Armed Services Committee and the Agricultural Committee.
- Supreme Court Justice Josiah Coleman has held a seat on the state Supreme Court since January of 2013 after practicing law in Oxford and Tupelo. He is challenged by Chancery Court Judge Percy Lynchard Jr., who has served seven terms as a chancery judge. This Supreme Court seat covers the northern district, which consists of Alcorn, Attala, Benton, Calhoun, Carroll, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Clay, Coahoma, DeSoto, Grenada, Itawamba, Lafayette, Lee, Leflore, Lowndes, Marshall, Monroe, Montgomery, Oktibbeha, Panola, Pontotoc, Prentiss, Quitman, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tippah, Tishomingo, Tunica, Union, Webster, Winston and Yalobusha counties.
- This year’s ballot also features a vote for medical marijuana in the state, brought on by a petition that gained over 200,000 signatures. Initiative 65 would approve an amendment to the state’s constitution to allow Mississippians who have one of 22 listed conditions to gain access to medical marijuana as treatment. Initiative 65A, an alternative to Initiative 65 introduced by the state legislature, would allow terminally ill patients to receive medical marijuana and give lawmakers more control over the program. Voters can also choose to reject the creation of a medical marijuana program altogether and keep all uses of marijuana illegal in Mississippi.
- Finally, voters will get the chance to complete the process to give Mississippi a new state flag. In a months-long proceeding, the state of Mississippi has removed the old flag, which featured the Confederate battle flag emblem, considered thousands of potential designs and narrowed down the options to the final design featured on the ballot. Several designers came together to create the design, including Oxford resident Kara Giles.
Photo courtesy the U.S. Embassy and Consulate to Kazakhstan.
Navigating your vote: what you will see on your ballot in the 2020 election in Lafayette County
by 
Eliza Noe
Eliza Noe 
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