Video: Clay Supes Say No to New Justice Court Districts

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CLAY COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) — What started as an effort to simplify ballots for voters and poll workers turned into a small community tempest.

But Clay County supervisors put it to rest Thursday when they unanimously rejected a proposal to slightly adjust lines for the county’s two justice court and constable districts.

The decision came after the District 1 Judge Thomas Hampton, Constable Sherman Ivy and about two dozen others spoke against the change during an hour-long public hearing.

The plan would have moved163 voters from District 2 to District 1 to avoid having five different ballot combinations at the South West Point precinct and four each at the east and central West Point precincts.

But opponents said the change comes too close to the January 5th start of qualifying for next year’s elections, which starts Jan. 5 and ends Feb. 27. Hampton and others said that date was too close for anyone who was planning to run and even with the small change, it could make a difference in a close election.

Others said the Election Commission, Circuit Clerk’s office and poll workers should be able to handle the multiple ballots and that voters have all the information they need to know about their districts on their voter registration cards.

After the discussion, both Circuit Court Clerk Bob Harrell and District 3 Election Commission member Wendy Howell said the Election Commission was only trying to improve convenience and eliminate confusion for voters and poll workers and never thought about the qualifying date issue. They both recommended the supervisors reject the plan for now, in light of next year’s elections.