MS Votes in the News
Mississippi Votes Celebrates Passage of Medical Marijuana Bill; Continues Call for Restoration of Ballot Initiative Process
February 07, 2022
JACKSON, Miss. – On Wednesday, February 2nd, 2021, Gov. Tate Reeves signed the Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act of 2022 into law. In November 2020, Mississippians headed to the polls and voiced their opinions on this issue. Ultimately, Mississippi's medical marijuana initiative…
Mississippi Votes Statement On U.S. Senate’s Failure To Advance Voting Rights Legislation
January 20, 2022
JACKSON, Miss. – Today, the U.S. Senate continued debating the advancement of both the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom To Vote Act. Both bills were passed by the U.S. House on Thursday, Jan. 13th, and together are two of the most prominent pieces of…
Press Release: Mississippi Votes And One Voice Celebrate MLK Day Calling On U.S. Senate To Pass Voting Rights Legislation
January 17, 2022
JACKSON, Miss. – Today, Mississippi nonprofits Mississippi Votes and One Voice are calling on the U.S. Senate to pass both the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act to restore federal voting rights protections to Mississippi voters. Today marks the…
Mississippi Votes Statement on Governor Reeves Special Session Decision
November 16, 2021
JACKSON, Miss. – Mississippi Votes Executive Director Arekia Bennett today issued the following statement on Gov. Tate Reeves’ failure to call a special session ahead of next year’s legislative session: “Whether it be fixing Mississippi’s broken ballot initiative process…
Mississippi Votes Statement on Cloture Vote of John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act in U.S. Senate
November 03, 2021
JACKSON, Miss. – Today, the United States Senate failed to reach the supermajority threshold needed to overcome the filibuster and open debate regarding the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, a critical piece of federal voting rights legislation. In response, Arekia…
Mississippi Votes Statement on Felony Disenfranchisement Hearing Held by Mississippi Legislature
October 28, 2021
JACKSON, Miss. – Today, House Judiciary Committee B in the Mississippi Legislature held a hearing on the status of felony disenfranchisement in the state of Mississippi and the next steps the legislature must take in addressing the issue. The committee heard from Neal Ubriani…
Mississippi Organizations Respond To Critical Race Theory Report
October 08, 2021
JACKSON, Miss - A nationwide attempt to censor discussions of race in the classroom has made its way to Mississippi. A recent report by a conservative think-tank seeks to erase America’s complex and painful history of racism and oppression from Mississippi classrooms – a legacy…
PRESS RELEASE: Mississippi Votes Joins National Campaign to Educate and Empower Local Voters
October 05, 2021
JACKSON – In an effort to help young voters across Mississippi participate in their democracy with confidence, this week Mississippi Votes will celebrate National Voter Education Week (“NVEW”), a digital campaign to equip communities with all of the information they need to be…
Mississippi Votes Statement on House Passage of John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act
August 25, 2021
JACKSON – Today, Mississippi Votes Executive Director Arekia Bennett issued the following statement in response to the U.S. House of Representatives’ recent passage of HR4, the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act: “The House of Representatives has chosen to honor the legacy…
Young, Woke, and Voting: Youth Civic Engagement in Mississippi and the Power of Our Votes
April 08, 2021
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Tim Young - communications@msvotes.org JACKSON, MS -- Mississippi Votes is an organization of intergenerational synergy centering and led by young people invested in the progression of Mississippi. Our organization’s programming and outreach…
Mississippi Elections Chief Warns Biden May Register ‘Uninformed,’ ‘Woke’ College Voters
April 06, 2021
Mississippi’s top election official says he is worried that the nation will suffer if more “woke” and “uninformed” college students become registered voters. Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson made that remark in a televised interview while describing President Joe…
OPINION: Bring Mississippi Into the 21st Century—Overturn Its Jim Crow-era Voting Laws
March 31, 2021
When it comes to voting, there is no denying a simple fact about Mississippi: our state has refused to eliminate antiquated laws that disproportionately silence Black and young voters. In drafting the state's constitution in 1890, white lawmakers with mal intent sought to limit…
Reentry and voting: New report shows barriers faced by Mississippians after time in prison
March 09, 2021
A new study suggests that Mississippians who finish prison sentences should have a clear path to reestablishing their voting rights instead of a system in which they often don't find success. The report, "Our Voices, Our Votes: Felony Disenfranchisement and Reentry in Mississippi…
Advocates continue to push for voting rights restoration of convicted felons in Mississippi
March 09, 2021
Do the crime, do the time. It’s a phrase you’ve heard before. But here in Mississippi, there’s a big consequence that sticks with some offenders for life regardless of the time they serve. Kim Biggs served time for a felony bad check charge. She was ready to start over when she…
Restore right to vote: Mississippians deserve power to change their communities
March 02, 2021
As a life-long Mississippian with almost a decade of public service working for the city of Jackson, I have been a committed and active community member. My ability to create a better future for my community, however, has been blocked because I can’t vote. I lost my right to vote…
Vote Your Voice: In Mississippi, grantee organizations are challenging systemic voter suppression
November 02, 2020
Cynthia Parham wants to vote by absentee ballot. A survivor of five heart bypass surgeries, the 61-year-old insurance agent in Oxford, Mississippi, also has diabetes and kidney disease. With the coronavirus a deadly threat to her, she has rarely left her home since March. But she…
Here’s How Young Black Voters Are Fighting Back Against Voter Suppression in Mississippi
September 24, 2019
While folks around the country are galvanizing today, National Voter Registration Day, to make sure people are eligible to vote come Election Day, here in Mississippi, young black voters are fighting for much more than making sure our names are on the voter rolls. For four…
Be a geofence: The story behind the technology that millennial-led Mississippi Votes uses to help more young Mississippians vote
June 06, 2019
JACKSON — Arekia Bennett throws herself into a chair in front of a dark red accent wall and rattles off a list of positions she hopes to fill as quickly as possible at Mississippi Votes, the nonprofit she has led as executive director for almost a year. Recently, Mississippi…
Pretrial detainees not convicted of crimes can vote, but Mississippi makes it impossible
November 02, 2018
With the upcoming midterm elections, we have already seen alarming reports of voter suppression across the country, including in Georgia and Kansas. Often forgotten in these reports is the segment of our population that remains unseen: incarcerated, eligible voters. For people…
A New Class of Voting Rights Activists Picks Up the Mantle in Mississippi
September 25, 2018
OXFORD, Miss. — The first time Howard Kirschenbaum registered voters in Mississippi was during the summer of 1964, when he was arrested and thrown in jail. The second time was on Tuesday, after returning to the Southern state more than a half-century later to support a new…