WOODVILLE — An official ruling for the three-month Wilkinson County election contest is expected today.

Judge Jim Persons notified all attorneys involved in the case last Thursday that he plans to call for a new election, but an official ruling has not yet been rendered.

Persons said in the notice he would render the verdict within seven days of Feb. 21.

Persons decided to call for a new election after he ruled that the absentee, affidavit and curbside ballots from the Aug. 7 Democratic primary could not be considered as evidence in the contest because their chain of custody was in question.

Attorneys for the challengers to the election — circuit clerk candidate Lynn Tolliver Delaney, supervisor candidate Kirk Smith and sheriff candidate Jessie Stewart — tried to convince Persons to keep the machine-counted ballots.

In his unofficial notice, Persons said with the exclusion of the paper ballots the will of the voters of Wilkinson County could not be determined.