Opinion ID: 1817972
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The hearing before the Panel designated by the KCDEC.

Text: ¶ 34. Harpole contends that the KCDEC acted improperly in denying him a hearing before the full committee. After giving notice to the parties and counsel concerning the September 22nd hearing, the KCDEC, by order, designated seven of its committee members to serve on this panel, plus an additional committee member was designated to serve as the secretary, but she was not a panel member. The panel proceeded to diligently perform its duties and after the hearing of September 22, 2003, entered a detailed written findings of fact, which was thereafter considered and adopted by the full committee. Miss.Code Ann. § 23-15-921 in pertinent part states that it shall be the duty of the executive committee . . . to investigate the grounds upon which the election is contested and, by majority vote of members present, declare the true results of such primary. In his written opinion, Judge Smith interpreted this language and stated: Nowhere in the statute does it specify the manner in which the committee is to conduct its investigation. In the instant case, the DEC met and designated a panel to conduct a hearing on [Harpole's] Petition. The panel conducted the investigation and held a hearing on September 22, 2003, at which time both sides were given the opportunity to present evidence. After conducting the hearing, the members of the committee unanimously declared its findings. It is the opinion of this Court that the DEC fulfilled not only the actual written statutory requirements imposed upon it, but also the spirit of fairness and justice embodied by the statutes. The DEC did not violate [Harpole's] statutory rights in the way it conducted its investigation. ¶ 35. Judge Smith appropriately found this issue to be without merit. Simply put, Judge Smith's interpretation of the statute makes good sense. Our cases are legion where we acknowledge the necessary time constraints involved in election contests so that uncertainty can become certainty and the elections can proceed. In appropriately putting this election contest on a fast track, the KCDEC at least inferentially acknowledged its full membership would experience extreme difficulty in putting their personal lives on hold while they, on short notice, dropped everything to be involved in a fairly lengthy investigative hearing to fairly consider the evidence presented. Thus, the designation of a smaller panel consisting of KCDEC members satisfied both the fast-track requirement existing in election contests, but of equal importance, such action also satisfied the fairness requirement existing in election contests so as to give full, complete and serious consideration to the contestant in an election contest. Accordingly, the KCDEC fulfilled its statutory directive and investigated all grounds included in the contest (with the exception of those excluded by its order), made preliminary findings regarding these grounds prior to the hearing, conducted an evidentiary hearing, and ultimately unanimously adopted the panel's findings rendered pursuant to the hearing. There is thus no merit in this assignment of error.