This November, Mississippians will elect the next or reelect the current governor, but new restrictions on absentee ballots may restrict some disabled people from being able to vote. On March 22, incumbent Gov. Tate Reeves, a Republican, approved Senate Bill 2358, under which only an election official, postal worker, family member, or caregiver can return an absentee ballot, instead of friends, neighbors, or volunteers for voter services groups—who would face fines and up to a year’s incarceration for doing so. The restrictions go into effect July 1, and the primaries for positions such as governor or state senator will take place August 8. Over two months after Reeves approved the bill, Disability Rights Mississippi, the League of Women Voters of Mississippi, and three Mississippi voters filed a federal lawsuit, claiming that the law restricts disabled Mississippians’ ability to receive assistance in voting. “Voters—especially those with disabilities—depend on the assistance of community groups, friends, and neighbors,” said Peg Ciraldo, co-president of the League of Women Voters of Mississippi, in a statement.

 

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