Tuesday, April 1, is primary election day in the city of Charleston, and registered voters will be asked to mark their ballots for candidates to lead municipal government over the next four years.
Polls Tuesday will be open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m.
State law also requires city clerk offices to be open on Saturday, March 29, from 8 a.m. until noon, for in-person absentee voting for next week's Democratic primary election.
Four of five incumbent Charleston aldermen will face a challenge.
Ward 1 Alderman Gyrone Kenniel, 71, is challenged by a former holder of the seat, Dorothy Brown, 78, as well as by Laura Warrior, 68.
Ward 3 Alderwoman Brenda Walton-Willis, 64, is opposed by her predecessor on the city board, Tawanda Shannon, 50.
Ward 4 Alderwoman Sandy F. Smith, 45, faces off against Gina M. Holley, 57, and Michael Webster, 37.
Ward 5 Alderman Perry Lee Herron, 65, faces a challenge from Cassandra Harris-Patterson, 44.
Ward 2 Alderman Lloyd C. Smith, 70, has no opposition this election cycle.
Mayor Sedrick Smith Sr., 53, has no Democratic opponent, but independent Travis Taylor, 69, waits in the wings for the June 3 general election — provided he passes the Tallahatchie County Election Commission’s reported review of signatures on Taylor’s petition forms.
Another independent mayoral hopeful, Sharon Bradley, 36, was disqualified for failing to meet the two-year residency requirement, said Charleston City Clerk Vanisha Powell.
As usual, three separate sites will be utilized as polling places for voters based on their place of residency, as follows:
» Ward 1 and Ward 2: Charleston City Hall
» Ward 3 and Ward 5: East Tallahatchie School District central office
» Ward 4: Charleston Rotary Club hut
In the event no one receives a majority of the vote in any race in the primary, the top two vote-getters in that race will advance to a primary runoff on Tuesday, April 22.
Glendora, Tutwiler and Webb will not conduct a primary election due to the fact all of their candidates qualified as independents and will not appear on the ballot until the general election.
Sumner will not conduct a party primary on Tuesday because their incumbent mayor and at-large alderman qualifiers are unopposed and will automatically advance to the general.
General election winners will begin serving a four-year term on July 1.
For more information about the Charleston primary, call the city clerk's office at 662-647-5841.
For general information about this year's elections, visit the Mississippi secretary of state's "Y'all Vote" landing page.
The secretary of state's toll-free elections hotline number is 800-829-6786.
The entire 2025 elections calendar for the state may be viewed here.
