Hinds County’s failure to ensure voters had enough ballots to vote in Mississippi’s Nov. 7 general election is drawing scrutiny from Congress. On Dec. 5, U.S. House Committee on House Administration Chairman Bryan Steil, a Wisconsin Republican, sent a letter to all five members of the Hinds County Election Commission demanding answers.
The congressman noted that his committee “has broad oversight of our nation’s federal elections” and said he wanted to express his “deep concerns about reports that several polling locations in Hinds County, Mississippi, ran out of ballots on Election Day.”
“Situations like this reported ballot shortage and the distribution of incorrect ballot styles have the potential to damage voter confidence at a time when we can least afford it,” Steil wrote. “As you may know, the Committee is especially concerned with resolving any issues that may lead to the disenfranchisement of voters due to government-created ballot shortages.”
Click the screencap above to read Chairman Steil’s letter.
In Mississippi, county election officials are in charge of ensuring voters in each of their precincts have enough ballots. But on Election Day, voters in at least nine Hinds County precincts were unable to cast a ballot due to shortages. In some cases, people waited hours for election officials to print more ballots; some precincts repeatedly ran out of ballots; other precincts received incorrect ballots.
“Although a court order allowed polls to remain open to give voters additional time to vote, some voters may still not have been able to vote. This is completely unacceptable and does not inspire Americans’ confidence in our nation’s elections,” Steil’s letter says.
Last month, WJTV reported that the Hinds County Election Commission attributed the shortages to officials using the wrong forms for ballot orders and that “the commission said they take full responsibility for what occurred during the general election.” Election Commissioner Shirley Varnado, who represents District 5, said she hoped the Mississippi secretary of state’s office would offer assistance or guidance in the future.
After the election, Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson’s office placed the blame squarely on Hinds County election officials. His office