Campaign finance requirements for Mississippi judicial elections
This page covering campaign finance requirements in state judicial elections was last updated in 2016. If you would like to help our coverage grow, consider donating to Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.
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Note: This page is not intended to serve as a manual. Individuals who are interested in running for a judicial office should contact their state election agencies for more information about specific filing processes and requirements.
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Candidates for judicial offices in Mississippi must adhere to the state's campaign finance laws. These laws regulate the amounts and sources of money given or received for political purposes; in addition, campaign finance laws stipulate disclosure requirements for political contributions and expenditures.
The laws and regulations that apply to judicial campaigns may differ from those that apply to candidates for political office. To learn more about campaign finance requirements for other candidates, see this article.
Judicial elections overview
Judges in Mississippi participate in nonpartisan elections, except for justice court judges, which are selected in partisan elections.[1]
Methods of judicial selection vary across the United States. In general, there are five main methods of judicial selection:
- Partisan elections: Judges are elected by the people, and candidates are listed on the ballot alongside a label designating political party affiliation.
- Nonpartisan elections: Judges are elected by the people, and candidates are listed on the ballot without a label designating party affiliation.
- Legislative elections: Judges are selected by the state legislature.
- Gubernatorial appointment: Judges are appointed by the governor. In some cases, approval from the legislative body is required.
- Assisted appointment, also known as merit selection or the Missouri Plan: A nominating commission reviews the qualifications of judicial candidates and submits a list of names to the governor, who appoints a judge from the list. After serving an initial term, the judge must be confirmed by the people in a yes-no retention election to continue serving.[2]
Some states also use a mix of these methods. For example, appellate court judges in the state of New York are chosen by assisted appointment, but the state’s trial court judges are chosen in partisan elections.
Before the mid-1800s, nearly all states admitted to the Union selected their judges by gubernatorial appointment with legislative confirmation, though some opted to select judges by legislative vote alone. In 1832, Mississippi became the first state to implement partisan judicial elections. In 1873, Cook County, Illinois, became the first jurisdiction in the United States to implement nonpartisan judicial elections. In 1940, Missouri became the first state to adopt the assisted appointment method; since then over thirty states have followed suit, using some form of retention elections at some level of their judiciary.[3][4]
- See also: Judicial elections and Judicial selection in the states
Contribution limits and other restrictions
Individuals and political action committees cannot contribute more than $2,500 per candidate for district court candidates and $5,000 per candidate for appeals court and state supreme court candidates. Corporations and labor unions are allowed to contribute to judicial elections in Mississippi but cannot contribute more than $1,000 per a year to a candidate.[5][6]
Reporting requirements
Mississippi uses a monthly campaign finance reporting system for judicial candidates; in addition, judicial candidates must file a post-election report. Monthly reports are due 10 days after the end of the month, and the post-election report is due 30 days after the election. In these reports, candidate committees must report the name, address, employer, and occupation of those who have contributed over $200 aggregate in a year.[7]
In addition to the regular reports, judicial candidate committees must submit a report of any contribution of over $200 within 10 days of an election within 48 hours of receipt.[8]
Year-specific reporting dates
2016
The table below lists campaign finance report filing deadlines for judicial candidates in Mississippi in 2016.
| Campaign finance reporting deadlines in Mississippi, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Report | Filing deadline | |
| January report | February 10, 2016 | |
| February report | March 10, 2016 | |
| March report | April 10, 2016 | |
| April report | May 10, 2016 | |
| May report | June 10, 2016 | |
| June report | July 10, 2016 | |
| July report | August 10, 2016 | |
| August report | September 10, 2016 | |
| September report | October 10, 2016 | |
| October report | November 10, 2016 | |
| Post-election report | December 8, 2016 | |
| November report | December 10, 2016 | |
| December report | January 10, 2017 | |
| Source: Justia, "§ 23-17-51," accessed April 24, 2016 | ||
State agencies
- See also: Campaign finance agencies in Mississippi
In Mississippi, there are two primary agencies involved in campaign finance regulation: the offices of Mississippi Secretary of State and the Mississippi Attorney General. The former oversees reporting processes for candidates and political committees. The latter is authorized to prosecute criminal violations of Mississippi's campaign finance laws.
Mississippi Secretary of State, Elections Division
- Heber Ladner Building
- 401 Mississippi Street
- Jackson, Mississippi 39205
- Telephone: 601-576-2550
- Fax: 601-576-2545
Mississippi Attorney General
- 550 High Street, Suite 1200
- Jackson, Mississippi 39201
- Telephone: 601-359-3680
Campaign finance legislation
The following is a list of recent campaign finance bills that have been introduced in or passed by the Mississippi state legislature. To learn more about each of these bills, click the bill title. This information is provided by BillTrack50 and LegiScan.
Note: Due to the nature of the sorting process used to generate this list, some results may not be relevant to the topic. If no bills are displayed below, no legislation pertaining to this topic has been introduced in the legislature recently.
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Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Mississippi campaign finance. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Campaign finance requirements in Mississippi
- Campaign finance agencies in Mississippi
- Campaign finance requirements for Mississippi ballot measures
- Mississippi judicial elections, 2016
External links
- Mississippi Secretary of State, Elections Division
- Mississippi Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance"
Footnotes
- ↑ State of Mississippi Judiciary, "About the Courts," accessed May 1, 2014
- ↑ American Bar Association, "Judicial Selection: The Process of Choosing Judges," June 2008
- ↑ American Judicature Society, "History of Reform Efforts," archived October 2, 2014
- ↑ NYU Press, "The Study of Judicial Elections," accessed December 27, 2014
- ↑ Justia, "§ 97-13-15," accessed April 24, 2015
- ↑ Mississippi Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance Guide," accessed April 29, 2016
- ↑ Justia, "§ 23-17-51," accessed April 24, 2016
- ↑ Justia, "§ 23-15-807," accessed April 24, 2016
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