Ballot box; prohibit the opening of and counting of votes until all of the polling places have closed.

HB 949 requires that no ballot boxes be opened or votes counted until all polling places have closed, which occurs at 7:00 p.m. or after the last voter in line casts their ballot. Poll managers must wait for the registrar to confirm all polling places have closed and votes are fully tallied before opening ballot boxes or announcing results. Once notified, poll managers must simultaneously share their precinct's vote totals to prevent partial results from being released early. This bill standardizes the timing for vote counting and result announcements across Mississippi elections.