As the ballots roll in during the general election, many voters will also proudly post about their engagement in the election on social media. But in Mississippi, one thing has to stay out of the picture: their ballots.
Most states do not ban ballot selfies, and roughly 26 million people have taken one, according to a report from Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE). But Mississippi remains one of more than a dozen states that bans them.
A state law that went into effect in 2017 forbids voters from showing their ballot to another person. Breaking the law is punishable by a fine between $25 and $100. This law also applies to ballot selfies, according to the Mississippi Secretary of State’s office.
Oktibbeha County Circuit Clerk Tony Rook said that the law is designed to prevent voter intimidation, among other things.
“If an individual is forced or coerced to vote for a certain individual, how else do you prove you’ve done it?” Rook said. “You take a picture of it. That’s the presumption, that it could be a form of voter intimidation.”
Though local officials have not experienced significant issues around ballot selfies, a North Carolina woman is suing her state and county boards of elections, after she was ordered to take a post off of X, formerly known as Twitter, that displayed her ballot during the primary elections March 5.
Enforcement
While Lowndes County Circuit Clerk Teresa Barksdale agrees on why the law exists, the way it is enforced between the two counties varies slightly.
Poll workers across the state receive training on issues to watch for in polling places, Rook said, including ballot photos. While poll workers in Lowndes County received their training last week, others in Oktibbeha will receive training in October.
Rook said a majority of the problems that come with ballot photos being shared are prevented in Oktibbeha County by not allowing voters to use their cell phones while in a polling place.
If a voter does get their phone out, the bailiff present will ask them to put their phone away, Rook said. He has never seen the situation escalate beyond that.
In Lowndes County, Barksdale said poll workers and bailiffs do not prevent voters from using their phones. But if it appears someone is taking a photo of their ballot, the election staff will warn the voter that it is illegal to share their ballot, she said.
Typically, that is enough to “nip it in the bud,” Barksdale said. But if a ballot photo does get posted on Facebook, she and her team will try to reach out to that voter, letting them know the ballot is shared illegally and asking them to take it down.
“We’ve never had a problem with it, because we’ve got mainly people that want to hold up the integrity of the election,” Barksdale said. “… With some first timers – I think maybe some parents of some 18 or 19 year olds may. … We get maybe one or two calls, and that’s stretching it.”
Further enforcement or charges would be up to the district attorney or the attorney general’s office.
Sixteenth Circuit District Attorney Scott Colom said his office has not dealt with a case related to that law. He said one issue that can come up with ballot photos is that many voters don’t know the law exists.
If concerns about a ballot photo come across his desk, Colom said pursuing charges would come down to intent or if it involved any further intimidation.
“My approach is to tell them to take it down, and if they take it down, let bygones be bygones,” Colom said.
Both of the circuit clerk’s offices post sample ballots in advance of the election. But Rook said those do not have any candidate’s name selected and are clearly labeled as sample ballots, so they are allowed to be shared.
First-time voters
The Dispatch interviewed 13 New Hope High School seniors that are planning to vote for the first time in November. Only one had previously heard about the law. A majority of the students, once they learned about the law, agreed with it.
Madison Petty said it helps to protect voters from repercussions over political disagreements.
“I think it should be like that, to protect voters,” Petty said. “To protect others and yourself. Because some people might be against what you did.”
But Tyler Elliott said he disagreed with the law because the person marking the ballot should be the one who decides if that information should be shared.
“I think that it should be your decision,” Elliott said. “I don’t think it’s fair that you should get fined for showing somebody something you wrote down. Now, if I gave (my ballot) to somebody else and they showed somebody else, that should be a problem.”
Anthony Fore said if the law weren’t in place, he would want the option to take a picture with his ballot.
“I probably would, just to have a memory of the first time of me doing it,” Fore said. “I’d just take a picture once every time I (voted), just to see how differently I’ve chosen.”
But Kalyn Branch said the law is fair as it stands, since there are other ways to share that you voted on social media.
“They give you an ‘I Voted’ sticker, so if you want to post on social media that you voted, you can with that sticker,” Branch said. “You don’t have to share your ballot.”
“There’s no reason to be taking a picture of your ballot,” she added.
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 39 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
