A Better Columbus

03/24/2026

"If someone is really interested in going to jail, they should submit a fraudulent mail ballot because they have committed a federal and state crime, and they have created an extensive paper trail relating to their crime. It will get caught and they will get prosecuted." David Becker, Executive Director & Founder of The Center for Election Innovation & Research. That may be accurate in most places, but that's certaintly not the case in Columbus-Lowndes, MS where voter and homestead fraud don't get prosecuted.

The Supreme Court will consider whether states can count mail ballots that are postmarked by Election Day but arrive after.

03/23/2026

Secretary of State Michael Watson says it doesn't matter if some ballots are received after Election Day. Others argue that the laws allowing officials to count late-arriving ballots invites fraud and creates the appearance of fraud. SOS Election Division: 601-359-9372

The Supreme Court is considering a challenge to a Mississippi law that allows ballots that are postmarked by but received up to five days after Election Day to be counted.

12/08/2025

Attorney General Lynn Fitch prosecuted a voter fraud case in Greenwood! Contact her office about the Columbus voter fraud cases and encourage her to take action. 601-359-3680.

Mississippi Woman Sentenced in Ballot Harvesting Case

A Greenwood woman has been sentenced in a ballot harvesting case, according to Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch.

Officials say that in July 2023, Bobbie Peoples knowingly collected and submitted a mail-in ballot that did not belong to her and that she was not legally authorized to handle.

Peoples was sentenced to six months in custody with the time suspended and ordered to pay a fine of $2,718.

“Free and fair elections are a pillar of our democracy,” Fitch said. “Ballot harvesting undermines trust in the fairness of our elections, and we must be vigilant to maintain the integrity of the electoral process.”

11/05/2025

Audit Failure Scandal: City’s Repeated Lies About Fixing Financial Controls

A review of City Auditor reports shows a pattern of serious financial control failures—including recurring Material Weaknesses and the inability to reconcile bank accounts. The primary concerns are:

False Claims: The City has a documented history of falsely claiming it "already corrected" these control failures.

Audit Delays: The persistent failure to complete timely audits is highly irresponsible given these severe, recurring financial risks.

Public Misunderstanding: The severity of these issues—which auditors classify as potential system failure and risk of fraud—is being consistently downplayed.

10/16/2025

An investigation of Columbus by the State Auditor? Who would have guessed? It seems the City of Columbus, MS - Mayor's Office and City Attorney want to know who spilled the beans about City corruption and ineptitude. Who do you think was the tattletale? Who do you think will go to jail next?

10/09/2025

10/06/2025

Former Natchez Accounts Receivable Clerk accussed of embezzlement. https://www.wjtv.com/news/local-news/former-natchez-accounts-receivable-clerk-accused-of-embezzlement/?fbclid=IwY2xjawNRIQ9leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFqZkRIV0VweDR1SXNObno5AR6n5IffiKzToZp2ivNQyGofbIGHpH3ZIx7ZBDalRRTrn2h5nI1qWGtMw9ER1g_aem_S6HvMI0W-zOP7-45ontKFg

NATCHEZ, Miss. (WJTV) – State Auditor Shad White announced the former Accounts Receivable Clerk for the City of Natchez was arrested for embezzling funds from the city. According to White, Re…

09/08/2025

Some things don't change. It's 2025, the City still doesn't have an audit commitee, or the 2023 or 2024 audits. For 2022, did anyone understands a "Material Weakness" is alarming? As usual, more empty promises to change, but the City and it's auditor keep making the same mistakes. The 2022 audit, the Mayor says "it wasn't me." The Ward 6 Congressman was the only one to ask questions. And the Dispatch doesn't know what their talking about. Some things change. And some people don't care. j Meanwhile, the Police Chief cares enough to vote, even though he claims homestead in Natchez. No one wants to investigate or do their job. Columbus, MS elected officials are failing you!

Audits were the theme of the night at the meeting of the mayor and city council in Columbus. The council received a report on the long-delayed 2021 Audit rep...

08/23/2025

08/21/2025

Support our First Responders! Salute to Lowndes County's Finest 9/11 Annual Event & First Responder Fund

🔥🚓🚑 It’s Time to Celebrate Our Heroes! 🚑🚓🔥
First responders — this event is for YOU!

06/26/2025

Some said there did not need to be a forensic audit because the city has an annual audit. The city does not have last year’s audit [2024], or the year before [2023], or even the year before [2022]. The last audit made public was from 2021.

In contrast, the City of Tupelo puts their annual audits on their website. https://www.tupeloms.gov/departments/finance