# Voted by Affidavit Because You Had No ID? You Have Until Tuesday, Nov. 10, to Make It Count. > With Scott Colom leading Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith by about 2,500 votes and thousands of affidavit ballots still under review, here is who needs to act, what to bring and where to go before the Tuesday, Nov. 10, deadline. *Politics · By Jackson Wire Staff · November 6, 2026* Thousands of affidavit ballots could decide Mississippi’s U.S. Senate race, and some of them will count only if the voter takes one more step by Tuesday. Democrat Scott Colom led Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith by 2,498 votes on WLBT’s results page Friday afternoon, and the Associated Press had not called the race. Secretary of State Michael Watson has estimated that 12,000 to 20,000 affidavit ballots are still under review across the state, WLBT reported. Who needs to act: Most affidavit voters do not need to do anything. You need to act only if you voted by affidavit because you did not show an acceptable photo ID, or because you have a religious objection to being photographed. Other affidavit voters do not need to go back, WLBT reported, citing Watson. The deadline: Tuesday, Nov. 10. The Secretary of State’s office says voters who cast an affidavit ballot because they did not have ID must present an acceptable photo ID to their circuit clerk’s office by Nov. 10. Office hours vary by county, so call ahead. What to do: At the circuit clerk’s office in the county where you are registered, you can show an acceptable photo ID, get a free Mississippi Voter ID card or sign an Affidavit of Religious Objection, according to the Secretary of State’s 2026 County Election Handbook. If you do none of those by the deadline, election officials must reject the ballot, the handbook says. Which IDs count: The Secretary of State lists a Mississippi driver’s license, including the Mobile ID; an ID card from a Mississippi state agency; a U.S. passport; a government employee photo ID from the federal government, the state or a local government in Mississippi; a Mississippi license to carry a pistol or revolver with your photo; a tribal photo ID; a U.S. military photo ID; a current student photo ID from an accredited Mississippi college, university or community college; a Mississippi Voter ID card; and any other current photo ID issued by the federal government or another state. Most can be up to 10 years old; the license to carry, the student ID and the catch-all federal or other-state ID must be current, meaning not expired. If you are not sure yours qualifies, call your circuit clerk before you go. No ID at all? Any circuit clerk’s office can issue a free Mississippi Voter ID card. The Secretary of State’s voter ID FAQ says to bring one document such as a birth certificate, Social Security card, Medicare or Medicaid card, voter registration card, a utility bill from the last six months, a bank statement, a paycheck, a government check or a W-2. Without any of those, the clerk can verify your birth record for free using your full legal name, date of birth, state of birth and mother’s maiden name. Where to go: the circuit clerk’s office in the county where you are registered. Clerk phone numbers are on the Wire’s Senate count tracker at thejacksonwire.com/mississippi-senate-race; where one is missing, or if your county has two clerk offices and you are not sure which to use, call the state Elections Hotline at 1-800-829-6786. Check your ballot: The Secretary of State’s site has a tool called Track my Absentee or Affidavit ballot. It asks for your county, name, date of birth and the last four digits of your Social Security number or your driver’s license number. A status appears only after county officials enter it, Watson told WLBT, and Magnolia Tribune reported that a “not accepted” listing should not be taken as final while counties are still reviewing ballots. Mail ballots: A mail ballot postmarked by Election Day counts if it reaches the circuit clerk by Nov. 10. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld that rule 5-4 in June in Watson v. Republican National Committee, a Mississippi case. Watson put the number that could still arrive at about 3,300 on Nov. 5, the Mississippi Free Press reported. Democracy Docket reported that Watson’s office eliminated a rule in August that let voters correct certain mail ballot problems, such as signature issues, and a spokesperson for the office told the outlet there are “no steps for curing a mail-in.” What happens next: County election commissions review the other affidavit ballots in open meetings and must certify their results by Nov. 13. Mississippi has no automatic recount, and the Secretary of State’s office told ABC News that a candidate cannot request one. Mississippi Today reported a recount would happen only if a court ordered it. The Wire’s tracker is updated as counties report. --- _Sources: Mississippi Secretary of State, Election Day reminders, Oct. 26 (https://www.sos.ms.gov/news/election-day-reminders-2026-general-election), Nov. 4 statement (https://www.sos.ms.gov/news/official-statement-election-update), 2026 County Election Handbook, 2026 Voter Information Guide, acceptable photo ID list (https://www.sos.ms.gov/yall-vote/voter-id/get-voter-id/acceptable-photo-ids) and Voter ID FAQ; WLBT, Nov. 5 (https://www.wlbt.com/2026/11/06/secretary-state-explains-affidavit-ballot-process-mississippi-senate-race/) and its results page as of 4:29 p.m. Nov. 6; Magnolia Tribune, Nov. 6 (https://magnoliatribune.com/2026/11/06/thousands-of-affidavit-ballots-could-decide-mississippi-senate-race/); Yahoo News, citing the AP, Nov. 6; Mississippi Free Press liveblog; Democracy Docket, Nov. 6; ABC News, Nov. 5; Mississippi Today, Nov. 5; and the Supreme Court’s opinion in Watson v. Republican National Committee, No. 24-1260 (June 29, 2026). The Wire does not call races._ --- [The Jackson Wire](https://www.thejacksonwire.com/) · [Read on the web](https://www.thejacksonwire.com/article/mississippi-affidavit-ballot-deadline-how-to-make-it-count)