MS HB797

Comprehensive revision of Mississippi's election code modernizing references from physical "registration books" and "pollbooks" to the electronic Statewide Elections Management System (SEMS) as the official record of registered voters, and updating terminology throughout (e.g., "commissioners of election" to "election commissioners," "managers of election" to "poll managers")

Moves municipal primary elections from the first Tuesday in May to the first Tuesday in April, with runoffs shifted from three weeks later in May to the fourth Tuesday in April, and establishes staggered terms for county election commissioners beginning in 2024, with Districts 1, 3, and 5 serving four-year terms and Districts 2 and 4 serving initial six-year terms

Establishes new training and certification requirements, including mandatory annual training seminars and skills assessments for election commissioners (with removal from office for failure to complete), an online certified poll manager training program with $25 compensation from the Help Mississippi Vote Fund, and a requirement that at least one certified poll manager serve in each polling place during general elections

Creates a new prohibition on campaign contributions from foreign nationals, updates campaign finance disclosure rules to require identification of expenditures made through credit cards and Internet payment platforms, and replaces prior campaign material attribution requirements with new rules requiring disclosure of the candidate, political committee, or producing entity on all campaign materials including electronic publications

Repeals approximately 40 obsolete code sections covering mechanical voting machines, legacy electronic voting systems, registration book maintenance procedures, a DRE demonstration requirement, and the penalty for polling place intoxication, while consolidating polling place and ballot box provisions and clarifying procedures for challenged, affidavit, and spoiled ballots