BILOXI – On behalf of the Gulf Coast legislative delegation, Secretary of State Michael Watson presented the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources (MDMR) with a check for $10,314,561, representing the Tidelands Trust Funds amounts collected during Fiscal Year 2022 for use during Fiscal Year 2023.

JACKSON – As of Sunday, October 23, 2022, the Statewide Election Management System (SEMS) reported a total of 17,693 absentee ballots requested, 16,884 absentee ballots sent, and 10,186 absentee ballots received in the state of Mississippi for the 2022 General Election. 

JACKSON — Circuit Clerk Offices will be open from 8:00 a.m. to noon for in-person absentee voting this Saturday, October 29.

The last day to vote in-person absentee is Saturday, November 5. Circuit Clerk Offices will be open from 8:00 a.m. to noon.

All mail-in absentee ballots must be postmarked by November 8 and received by county Circuit Clerk Offices within five business days of November 8 in order to count.

JACKSON – As of Sunday, October 30, 2022, the Statewide Election Management System (SEMS) reported a total of 29,919 absentee ballots requested, 29,044 absentee ballots sent, and 22,221 absentee ballots received in the state of Mississippi for the 2022 General Election. 

At the same point during the 2020 General Election, SEMS reported a total of 169,087 absentee ballots requested, 165,846 absentee ballots sent, and 142,591 absentee ballots received.

JACKSON — Mississippi's General and Special Election Day is less than a week away. The November 8 ballot features congressional, state judicial, and school board races, in addition to a handful of special elections.

JACKSON – As of Sunday, November 6, 2022, the Statewide Election Management System (SEMS) reported a total of 51,849 absentee ballots requested, 51,232 absentee ballots sent, and 46,120 absentee ballots received in the state of Mississippi for the 2022 General Election. 

JACKSON – In an attempt to be fully transparent, the Mississippi Department of Information Technology Services and our office want to provide an Election Day update regarding the periodic website outages.

An abnormally large increase in traffic volume due to DDoS activity caused the public facing side of our websites to be periodically inaccessible this afternoon. We want to be extremely clear and reassure Mississippians our election system is secure and has not been compromised. 

Yesterday, our office confirmed an abnormally large increase in traffic volume due to DDoS activity, which caused the public facing side of our websites to be periodically inaccessible. 

At this time, we do not have confirmation as to where the DDoS activity originated and more evidence would be required to attribute to any person or group.

JACKSON – The Secretary of State's Office has released the 2022 Report on Charitable Organizations. The annual report, which includes information such as total revenue, fundraising expenses and charitable purpose expenses, ensures Mississippians are informed of critical information regarding Mississippi charities prior to making a donation.

JACKSON — Secretary of State Michael Watson has announced the John Lewis Youth Leadership Award co-recipients for 2022-- Maisie Brown of Hinds County and Bobby Hudson of Harrison County. 

The award, created in 2021 by the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS), seeks to recognize gifted, civic-minded, young individuals in the state each year.