Qualifying deadline for election commission candidates is June 1

The COVID-19 pandemic has overshadowed many things and one, to a degree, is that we are having important elections this year.

Union Countians will vote Nov. 3 on a president, U. S. senator, U. S. representative, Supreme Court justice, five election commissioners and one county school board trustee.

The presidential preference primary and other party primaries were Tuesday, March 10. A runoff was not needed.

The next deadline is the end of the qualifying period for candidates for county election commissioner.

That deadline is 5 p.m. Monday, June 1, by which papers must be received in Stanford’s office.

Union County Circuit Clerk Phyllis Stanford said Monday that four of the five incumbents have qualified already and the fifth is expected to soon.

The current election commissioners are Wes Creighton, District 1; Bill Azlin, District 2; Barbara Reed, District 3; Mike Beam, District 4; and Wayne Wilhite, District 5. Beam had not qualified Monday.

Candidates for election commissioner must be qualified electors in their respective districts, file a petition of intent and a petition signed by not less than 50 qualified registered votes from their districts.

Mississippi candidates generally must not have been convicted of felony, except for manslaughter or tax code violations, or convicted of bribery or another offense punishable by a minimum one-year prison term.

The only school board seat to be voted on is that held by incumbent Wayne Mahon. He represents Union County School District 5, which does not have the same boundaries as Union County Supervisors District 5.

County school board candidates have only a one-month window in which to qualify, from Monday, Aug. 5 to Friday, Sept. 4.

Candidates for this office will have to not only be qualified electors in their districts but also file statements of intent with petitions signed by at least 50 registered voters in their districts.

A candidate for this office also must have a high school diploma or equivalent and not be a resident in a municipal separate district in the county. Anyone elected will have to complete a basic training and education course as well.

In addition to the above, two congressional races will be on the ballot.

Cindy Hyde-Smith, who filled the unexpired term of Thad Cochran, is the Republican incumbent and will least face Democratic challenger Mike Espy.

Our other senator, Roger Wicker, was elected to a new six-year term in 2018.

Incumbent Republican U. S. Representative Trent Kelly will also be on the ballot.

The most-publicized race will be for president. Although incumbent Republican Donald Trump is already running, it is too early to know who will represent Democrats, even though Joe Biden is the presumptive nominee at this point.

The delegates from Mississippi to the national convention for the Democratic and Republican parties are to cast their votes in proportion to the part primary election results.