Mississippi Democratic Party Calls on Secretary of State Watson to Acknowledge His Role in Voter Roll Problems

Mississippi Democratic Party Calls on Secretary of State Watson to Acknowledge His Role in Voter Roll Problems

Watson called the Experian rollout "wildly successful." Now he points to county election commissioners.

JACKSON, Miss. The Mississippi Democratic Party today called on Secretary of State Michael Watson to acknowledge his office's role in the voter roll problems affecting Mississippians. In a public Facebook reply to a constituent, Watson answered concerns about the Experian data his office distributed by pointing to county election commissioners.

Watson wrote, "Was some of the data off? Perhaps." He added that election commissioners are, by law, supposed to verify information before changing a voter's file, and that the affidavit ballot "is a safety net in case any mistakes were made." Screenshots of his comments are attached.

Those words follow a very different message. In March, Watson told Mississippi Public Broadcasting that his office's rollout of the Experian data was "wildly successful". His office announced the partnership in July 2025 as a way to bring "a new level of reliable data" to county election commissioners. Mississippi Today reported that the December 2024 contract said Experian could not guarantee the accuracy or reliability of its data, and that Watson's office signed off on that disclaimer. Mississippi Today also found that at least 50,000 voters were made inactive over address conflicts after the rollout began, and reported on Nov. 2 that inactivations surged ahead of Tuesday's election.

Watson, who has announced a campaign for lieutenant governor, chose to distribute the data to every county and described the results as a success. The Mississippi Democratic Party is calling on him to:

• Acknowledge publicly that his office chose, contracted for, and distributed the Experian data to election commissioners across Mississippi

• Support verified government data and notice to voters before anyone is made inactive

• Work with county election commissioners to make sure every legitimate affidavit ballot is counted

"Good leaders share credit and take blame," said Mississippi Democratic Party Chairman Cheikh Taylor. "Secretary Watson took the credit when he called this rollout wildly successful, and now he is handing the blame to county commissioners. Mississippians are waiting for him to say the one thing leaders say: this one is on me. Voters deserve verified data, notice before they are made inactive, and an official who answers for his own decisions."

"Michael Watson is the state's chief election officer. Readiness is his job, and this week showed it wasn't done," Taylor added. "The chief election officer sets the standard and owns the oversight. Counties need his office's training and support to meet that standard."

The Mississippi Democratic Party stands with every voter who cast an affidavit ballot and encourages anyone who did to contact their county election commission to confirm the ballot is being counted.

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