SPLC condemns legislature for passing the SHIELD Act

JANS – The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) condemns the passage of the Safeguard Honest Integrity in Elections for Lasting Democracy (SHIELD) Act by the Mississippi state Senate and House of Representatives. Rather than rejecting the bill, state legislators chose to disenfranchise more than a million Mississippians despite there being no evidence of widespread voter fraud in Mississippi elections. Once implemented on July 1, 2026, voters, many of whom have voted legally for decades, will face unnecessary barriers.  

In Mississippi, an estimated 647,000 female citizens have a last name that does not match their birth certificate. Only 20.6% of the state’s population has a passport, making Mississippi the lowest-ranking state in the nation for people with passports. 

“Similarly to the SAVE Act at the federal level, the Mississippi SHIELD Act is attempting to hand-pick who will vote in this year’s midterms and future elections,” said Sonya Williams Barnes, Mississippi policy director, SPLC. “This will restrict many eligible voters who do not have a passport or original birth certificate such as seniors, those that are disabled, and married women whose last name does not match their birth certificate from casting a ballot in future elections.”  

Additionally, the SHIELD Act will require Mississippi to run its voter registration records through a notoriously error-ridden federal database, which will almost certainly lead to Mississippi voters wrongfully flagged as noncitizens. The state would be required to notify flagged registrants and demand proof of citizenship; failure to present that documentation would mean removal from the rolls. Obtaining a birth certificate could cost $25 or more and a passport $165. 

“Asking voters to take additional and unnecessary steps to vote will place undue burdens on voters, who already have the legal right to vote. In Mississippi, rural voters may have to drive hours round trip to reach the office where they can obtain official records. For people living on fixed incomes, cost matters,” said Williams Barnes. “We need state legislators to serve the public good, rather than their own self-interest. Protecting election integrity shouldn’t come at the expense of limiting access for eligible voters.”