Both houses of the Mississippi legislature have passed bills to move the midterm primaries from June to March. Both bills passed unanimously. However, they differ slightly, so further action will be needed.

SB 2656, by Senator Jeremy England, moves them to the first Tuesday in March. HB 293, by Representative Noah Sanford, moves them to the first Tuesday after the first Monday in March.

The change hurts ballot access, because the deadlines for new parties and independent candidates are tied to the date of the primary. So these deadlines will now become several months earlier, assuming one of the bills passes. However, they have no effect on the deadline for independent presidential candidates, nor for new parties that just want to participate in the presidential election.