Special Judge Barry Ford ruled Wednesday in favor of a claim by former Hinds County Supervisor David Archie that fraud occurred in a 2023 Democratic primary that Archie lost.
Ford ordered a special election for the District 2 seat within 45 days, finding that significant errors occurred in the safekeeping of ballots. He also cited Circuit Clerk Zack Wallace’s testimony about the lack of a chain of custody of voter materials.
“I cannot determine the will of the voters, ” Ford said. “And case law says when the will of the voters can not be determined, then a do-over is required.”
The district’s current supervisor Anthony “Tony” Smith will remain in office during the time leading up to the special election. Smith told Mississippi Today that he has no plan to appeal the ruling, and that he is sure he can beat Archie again.
In a press conference outside the courthouse, Archie spoke about the ruling, and its importance to future Hinds County elections.
“No matter what your party is, whether you are independent, a Republican, Democrat, or whatever you are, if you are a voter, Hinds County now will take your vote serious, based on the outcome of this case today,” Archie said. “And everybody in the nation would be looking at this place in Hinds County Mississippi.”
Warren Martin, who represented Smith, criticized the ruling, saying the county was invalidating Black votes.
“In a day and time where we see an assault on the Voting Rights Act at the federal level, state level, today a specially appointed circuit judge invalidated 8,000 Black votes in Hinds County District 2,” Martin said. “You saw it real time today, in Hinds County with a Black special circuit judge. That is an abomination.”
Martin also told reporters that Wallace should be held accountable for the missing materials instead of Smith.
The ruling comes after an extended proceeding that began in February. Both Archie and the defense rested their case in Archie’s lawsuit on April 29. The group of election commissioners met with Ford through May 15 to advise him about their findings from the case.
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